Will of Fire
by kitara251
Summary: Find out what happens when the next generation of Konoha learn how to deal with each other.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Remembering! Old and New Family!**

He didn't know what made him walk to the gravesite, but whatever willed him he didn't push it away. He read over and over again what was written for his grandfather. _Well old man, looks like I'll be getting my own brats today,_ the jounin thought to himself. _Jounin._ Konohamaru smiled at the thought of finally becoming a jounin. Even though it had been almost 10 years ago, he still remembered be inducted. It truly filled his heart to see the Sarutobi name continue to grow, even after such loss.

_Mother, Father, Grandfather, Uncle Asuma…_He seemed lost in his thoughts until his ninja senses picked up on an upcoming presence.

"Hokage-sama will be upset if you show up late!" The female ninja warned.

"Hello to you too Kitara-oneechan!" His voiced cheered up which caused her to smile.

­­­

Konohamaru and Kitara had the same father, but different mothers. During its' early stages, Konohagure was a prosperous place, but it still needed alliances. Back when Orochimaru still posed as a Konoha shinobi, he took a foreign woman as a wife. That led to the conception of Kitara's mother, Katana.

This 'family' was nothing more than a front for they too were nothing more than subjects for his experiments. Seeing he now had a successor of his genes, he no longer needed a wife. He made it appear she was killed while traveling alone on a road away from the village. Though it was not formally named, the hidden village of sound was still under construction. Since it was still being formed, he made his only child live there and train. The Third Hokage, believing that was where her mother was from, allowed her to be trained there.

Many years passed before she returned to Konoha. Katana was both an extremely skilled and beautiful kunoichi. This caught the eye of many men; including the Third's oldest son, Aiken. Through an arranged marriage, they wed and conceived Kitara. There was only one flaw with this child…

…she was born blind.

Though it was a difficult decision, Aiken allowed his wife and only child to leave the village. The land of sound, he rationed, could help her situation better than he could; and her mother was also familiar with the area. The only stipulation was, by decree of the Third Hokage, that she be anointed as a Konoha ninja.

[Flashback]

Kitara was a fairly solemn child, keeping to herself and not really interacting with others, except her grandfather's pupil, Mitarashi Anko. Though six years older than her, Anko treated her with the utmost respect. Anko was really one of the few people she interacted with before she left the village to go to train. They often spared together, ate lunch, and spared more. "Why don't you ask Orochimaru-sama to train you as well? I know you're young, but you have potential even I didn't have at your age!" Anko asked Kitara one day.

"_I don't want to learn his way of the shinobi!" Kitara said harshly. "I don't like the way he teaches, the way he instructs, and I don't like him that much!" She finished._

"_How can you say such a thing Kitara-chan!? He is one of the Sannin. I know he seems a bit harsh and strict, but I have learned a lot from his teachings." Anko stated proudly._

"…" _Kitara sat in silence, debating whether or not she should say what's really on her mind. Not getting a reaction out of her, Anko continued._

"_When you are a little older, you'll understand. After all, you are like only 4 1/2 years old. I guess it's understandable to be a little afraid of him. You know he.."_

"_I'M NOT SCARED OF HIM!!!" Kitara yelled._

"_THEN WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM WITH HIM?" Anko yelled back._

"Well…" Kitara trailed off. [Sigh]…" I don't know." She started in a softer tone. "I get a scary feeling from him." She began explaining.

"Scary?" Anko asked with disbelief on her face.

"Like…evil." Kitara involuntary shivered. "It's freaky! Worst of all, his voice rattles my nerves each time he addresses me."

_Anko couldn't help but stare at the child. The way she spoke showed how truly mature she was. [Just what to expect from the prodigy of a genius] she mused to herself. "You'll get use to it Kita-chan. I know you don't want to hear it but he's __**your**__ grandfather and he'll need you at your best if he's going to teach you his techniques."_

"_Maybe you should have been his granddaughter then." Kitara said just above a whisper._

"_ANKO!" Anko stood at attention towards the man who had just addressed her. "Get packed! We are going off on a mission for a while."_

"_Hai! She said as she prepared herself to jump from building to building. She stared at the little girl before her._

"_Looks like I won't 'see' you for a while." Kitara smiled. "You'd better go before he gets pissed." Anko whispered a small 'see ya' before leaving to pack her tools. She heard Kitara say 'be careful' before disappearing in the distance._

"_My you've grown a bit Kita-chan!" The Sannin spat at her with his fake smile. She couldn't see it, but she grimaced at the thought of his leering voice._

"_Sir." She bowed in respect to him. As she turned to leave, his voice once again caught her attention._

"_Anko is right. You do have a lot of potential. Why don't you come with us? I'm sure your parents would approve." _

_Kitara stood stuck in her spot. [No way! He was listening the whole time! I didn't even notice his presence…] After quickly putting that thought aside, her mind went back to the conversation at hand._

_She knew he was right. Her parents still loved each other, but each time Kitara and Katana left it caused a drift in their marriage- as if they were growing apart from each other. To Kitara, it seemed the only reason they were still together was for her._

"_I don't think they'll mind…but would the Sarutobi-ojisan? I'm not even an academy student. It would be dangerous to send an innocent child on any mission. But I know you already know that…Sir."_

_His smile faded slightly. Any conversation that involved his sensei did not sit well with him. "Too bad you don't wanna go. I have a present I'm giving Anko and was hoping I could give you one too. Oh, well, I'll just have to wait a while. Ja ne!" With that, he was gone._

_She didn't know why, but she just continued to shake. The statement about the 'present' caused tremors throughout her body and she couldn't stop. In fact, she didn't stop until the day the ANBU members brought the distraught Anko back from the land of water. He had indeed given Anko a present…a cursed seal._

[Present]

Kitara walked beside her brother and traced the words on their grandfather's stone. "You know… you always were his favorite." She said low. "You seen to be the primary person to make him smile."

"Maybe…but you were his pride and joy long before I came into the picture." She smiled as he placed a hand on her shoulder. She took her right hand from the stone and placed it on her left shoulder where Konohamaru's hand was. Their sibling bonding was interrupted by the sound of a hawk's screech overhead.

"I told you Hokage-sama would be upset if you're late." She scolded as they made their way to the Hokage's tower.

"Yeah, but one thing's for sure…" He smiled his mischievous, childish way, "…I'm not showing up late alone!" Kitara quickened her pace to catch up with the now sprinting jounin. _Still a brat left in you._ She thought to herself as she caught up to him.

[Hokage Tower]

"YOUR'RE LATE!" The blonde yelled. Konohamaru dug his left index finger in his ear.

"My bad, my bad." He smiled. "I lost track of time."

"It's his own fault really Hokage-sama." Kitara said pointy.

Konohamaru stared at his sister as she deserted him. "You make it sound as if you weren't late either." He said in a hopeful comeback voice.

"Actually…a good source of mine told me you were lagging around. That is why I sent Kitara-san to retrieve you." Their Hokage explained.

Konohamaru glanced at the shinobi around the room until he saw one pair of eyes that wasn't laughing at him. _Should have known Misoa would be the one. _He smiled at the young shinobi.

"Now that everyone is here, let's begin the meeting." The blonde ordered. The meeting went on as scheduled. Various issues were discussed: missions, country alliances, Konoha's economy, etc. It went on for a whole twenty minutes until the Hokage came to the subject of the day. "Now the academy has sent me the names of students who are ready to begin as genin. If you know you were approved of being a jounin instructor, please step forward."

The selected jounin stepped forward to receive the names of their genin. "Alright, first off Team 1…" The Hokage mentally read over the three names before addressing one of the jounin lined up. After stating the ninja's name, he walked up to the Hokage to retrieved the paper. He looked over the names and rolled his eyes. _How did I get these brats! They can barely hit a bulls-eye with a sharp kunai 25ft away!_ He thought to himself. Bowing for respect, he then returned to his spot.

The Hokage continued on. "Next Team 2…" 3,4,5, and 6 went by fairly quick until Team 7 came into focus. After reading the names, the Hokage put on a classic fox-like grin that made everyone swallow hard.

_I know that look. Wonder who got Team 7?_ Konohamaru thought to himself.

"Team 7…Hatake…Kimiko." A young lady stepped forward to retrieve her team from her Hokage. Without even looking at the names, she bowed and returned to her spot beside the name of the ninja their Hokage called next. The fox-smiled widened as Team 8 flashed before blue eyes.

"Team 8…Sarutobi…Misoa." Though a bit older than the previous girl, he too was young. Approaching the Hokage, he saw that the blue orbs were now half- squinting and a smile that rivaled Rock Lee's. He took his paper and bowed before returning next to Kimiko. Needless to say, he too didn't bother looking at the names.

Konohamaru fixed his attention to the jounin._ 16 and 18 years old. I hope they know what they're getting into._ He was jarred back to reality as a man about his age walked beside him. He figured the man had just been assigned as instructor to Team 9._ Wonder who I'll be assigned to?_

"Team 10…Sarutobi…Konohamaru."_ Ask and you shall receive._ He thought as he walked up to the desk. By this time, the Hokage's eyes were completely squinted and that smile could have put Gai-sensei to shame. Bowing, he returned to his spot. Like the other 2, he didn't look at the names either.

Before they knew it, all names were given and the Hokage was wrapping up the meeting. "Is there any other business that requires attention before the meeting is wrapped up?" No one said a word. _Thank Kami-sama!_ The Hokage thought. "In that case, meeting adjourned for today!" Everyone bowed as they exited the door.

"Will the instructors for Teams 7, 8, and 10 please stay behind for a moment?"

"I'll catch up with you in a bit." Konohamaru told Kitara.

"Have fun." She said with a smile on her face.

Kimiko, Misoa, and Konohamaru stood side-by-side and awaited for the Hokage's words.

"You wished to see us Hokage-sama?" Kimiko asked.

"It's just us here. You don't have to be so formal with me!" The Hokage smiled.

"Okay then. Why did we have to stay behind Naruto-niisan?" Konohamaru asked.

"Well to be honest…I just wanted to know what you all thought of your teams." He smiled sheepishly while scratching the back of his head.

Everyone took that explanation as their cue to look at papers:

**Team 7: Hatake Kimiko**

(1) Uzamaki Hadoshi

Age: 12

Sex: Male

Ninja Ability: Average

Current Skills: Average _Juken_ (Gentle Fist), mild _Kage Bunshin,_ average chakra control

Family History: (Hyuuga) Uzamaki Hinata; Uzamaki Naruto-Sannin Level

(2) Uchiha Nagi

Age: 12

Sex: Female

Ninja Ability: Good

Current Skills: Excellent chakra control, mild fire jutsu

Family History: (Haruno) Uchiha Sakura; Uchiha Sasuke- both Sannin Level

(3) Uchiha Hachi

Age: 12

Sex: Male

Ninja Ability: Above Average

Current Skills: Good chakra control, average taijutsu, good fire justu

Family History: (Haruno) Uchiha Sakura; Uchiha Sasuke- both Sannin Level

**Team 8: Sarutobi Misoa**

(1) Inuzuka Kouga

Age: 12

Sex: Male

Ninja Ability: Above Average

Current Skills: Enhance senses, above average speed, partners with nin-dog: Michi (female)

Family History: (Karuma) Inuzuka Yakumo; Inuzuka Kiba (nin-dog: Akamaru)

(2) Aburame Shiobi

Age: 12

Sex: Female

Ninja Ability: Excellent

Current Skills: Use of destruction bugs, excellent stealth skills

Family History: Aburame Isaribi; Aburame Shino

(3) Hyuuga Kenshin

Age: 12

Sex: Male

Ninja Ability: Extraordinary

Current Skills: Mastery of _Juken_ (Gentle Fist), excellent taijutsu, great range with weapons

Family History: Hyuuga Ten-Ten; Hyuuga Neji

**Team 10: Sarutobi Konohamaru**

(1) Yamanaka Inoiki

Age: 12

Sex: Male

Ninja Ability: Good

Current Skills: Knowledge of all current ninjutsu, stealth skills

Family History: Yamanaka Ino; Sai

(2) Nara Shikaru

Age: 12

Sex: Female

Ninja Ability: Excellent

Current Skills: Advance speed, enhanced knowledge, tactical skills achieved

Family History: Nara Temari; Nara Shikamaru

(3) Akimichi Chouza

Age: 12

Sex: Male

Ninja Ability: Average

Current Skills: Ranges between 3 basic jutsus, enormous chakra holder

Family History: Akimichi Tsuke; Akamichi Choji

All three looked at Naruto with surprise. "Are you sure some of this information is alright to be put inside the academy records? I mean it does look like it should be in bingo books instead?" Misoa asked with confusion on his face.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked.

"Well, the information concerning their families…is it appropriate for the academy records?"

"I see where you're getting at Misoa. I assure you, the only reason they are included was because they used their 'family skills' to pass the academy. Anyway, their parents have already consented to their information being placed on the records." He finished.

Kimiko looked at Naruto with a questioning expression. "I have no problems with the team I've been assigned but I'm curious to know if you were bored when the teams were being assigned?"

"Now you know well as I do the officials at the academy make the teams; I just overlook them.

"She does have a point though. She has her old mans' team, I have my mothers', and Konohamaru has my fathers'. People will start to think you have a favoritism thing going on." Misoa stated.

Naruto took a deep breath while he digested everything Misoa had just said. True, the sequence is the same as the generation before but…

Naruto looked at the three of them with eyes that told them he was their Hokage. "I don't disagree. People are going to talk: that's human nature. But every single team was chosen based on the students' performance and the instructors' previous record. As of right now, you will decide whether or not the students will progress to genin or return to the academy. I trust all three of you to make wise decisions with your students. Remember, if you pass them, it will be mostly your responsibility to help them develop ninja skills and prep them for the chunnin exams. Do you understand what's being asked of you? Are you ready for the responsibility of three genin?"

"Hai!" They all answered in unison.

"Well if you don't have any more questions, you're dismissed…you all have to meet your genin tomorrow." As they turned to leave, they saw Izumo and Kotesu come in with loads of paperwork. They heard Naruto mutter something about 'lousy paperwork' as they exited.

Once outside, three ninja turned to their direction. "What took so long?" Kitara asked

"Yeah, we were about to go eat without you." The male ninja said. The female ninja beside him rolled her eyes. _You always want to eat!_ She thought to herself.

"Hokage-sama wanted us to tell him what we thought about our teams." Kimiko answered

"And…?" The female ninja inquired.

"You're nosey…you know that don't you Korisa?" Konohamaru asked with a smile.

"Mom always told me if you wanted to know something, ask a question." Korisa stated while glaring at him.

"You should be more like your brother there and try to figure out things by process of elimination." He joked.

"Hey! That 'process' has helped me out quite a bit in the past. I have a natural skill at elimination." The male ninja stated.

"Your mom must have told you that too." Konohamaru countered. Kimiko and Misoa couldn't help but crack a smile.

"Actually, I did tell Korisa and Sakemo those things. Their father disagrees though." Kitara spoke in defense of her children.

"It just figures Iruka-sensei would think his children are capable of no wrong." Konohamaru said to his sister. It had been years now, but the thought of his big sister and academy sensei making babies together made him wanna throw up.

"So are you guys gonna tell us or what?" Korisa asked again.

"Let's eat and talk. I'm starving." Kimiko said as she began to walk, followed by the others.

"What are we eating?" Kitara asked the group.

"RAMEN!" They all said unison.

She just shook her head. She wasn't the least bit surprised since they were practically raised on the stuff.

[Flashback]

_Iruka, Kitara, and Kurenai sat at the ramen shop with their children in their laps (four year old Korisa sat in Iruka's lap, five year old Sakemo sat in Kitara's lap, and three year old Misoa was in Kurenai's lap). There was an empty seat beside Kurenai that was to be occupied by a certain copycat ninja._

"_Geez after all this time he still doesn't have an internal alarm clock set yet?" Iruka asked in mild irritation._

"I'm sure he has a legit reason for being late this time." Kitara said in his defense.

[I doubt it]. Kurenai thought to herself with a smile. She had recalled a number of incidents where Kakashi was suppose to meet his team and was always late.

_**Poof!**_

"_You're late Kakashi." Kurenai said softly while keeping her eyes fixed on her son._

"_Well…my vest got dirty so I had to go back home and change…"_

"_Are you serious Kakashi? You could have at least let us known so we could have started feeding the kids!" Iruka stated._

"_My bad, my bad. I'll send Pakkun next time." The copycat ninja said with a smile behind his mask._

_A cooing sound made everyone turn his direction. In front of him was a child in a holster reaching for the book he had in the front of his face._

"_I can't believe you're reading that in front of the baby!" Kurenai stated in a disappointing way._

"_A 'baby' Kurenai. It's the cover the kid's fascinated with, not the words." He said lazily as he turned a page._

_Not wanting to debate in front of the kids, the issue was lifted for the time being. He took his seat beside Kurenai as the owner's daughter, Ayame, prepared to take their order. By this time her stomach had begun to show a little bump…meaning she had a bundle of joy coming one day._

"_Hello! What can I get for you all today?" Ayame asked with a smile on her face._

"_Daddy! I want ramen please." Korisa asked in a sweet voice._

"_Yeah mommy! I want ramen too!" Sakemo excitedly bounced on Kitara's leg._

"_Do you want ramen too Misoa?" Kurenai sweetly asked her son. He nodded his head first and then said a quiet "Yes please."_

"_Alright. And what will you be having today Kakashi-san?" Ayame asked the masked ninja._

_He looked up from his book momentarily to answer. "The usual that Naruto orders please." He then went back to his book._

"_Okay! Coming right up!" Ayame then turned her head back to help her father prepare the meals. Within a few minutes, the orders were ready. "Alright six bowls of ramen: 4 house specials and two diets."_

_Kitara raised an eyebrow when she heard the owner say 'diet'. "Kurenai? Why did you order Misoa a diet ramen again?"_

"_He likes the taste of it." She simply said._

"_Itadakimosu!" They all said as they broke their chopsticks._

_Iruka, Korisa, and Sakemo each had their own bowl, as did Kurenai and Misoa. Kakashi was yet to touch his. Sakemo looked up and offered his mother some ramen but she declined._

"_You're not eating today Kitara?" Iruka asked his wife._

"_I'm feeling a bit under the weather today." She replied._

"_You said the same thing yesterday." Kurenai stated._

_Iruka reached over and placed a hand over her forehead. "You don't have a fever. What's wrong?" She just shrugged her shoulders._

"_Maybe you're expecting again?" Kakashi said which made everyone go silent. "What? Just throwing ideas out there."_

"_What are you expecting mommy?" Sakemo asked._

"_Nothing!" Iruka and Kitara yelled with a slight blush. She sent a glare at Kakashi for the comment. He didn't say a thing; instead he just gave his daughter a mouthful of ramen._

"_Does her mother know you're feeding her that?" Kitara asked when she heard Kimiko slurp up ramen._

"_Hmm…yeah I guess so." [It's better than that sweet stuff her mother gives her.] He thought to himself. "It seems to be most of what she'll eat since Naruto babysat a while back." He sent a quick glance at Kurenai while she wasn't looking. "The night he and Hinata watched her and Misoa that is."_

_She fought the urge to retort when she saw Misoa reach over to Kimiko and wipe away traces of the ramen juices. There were a few 'awes' and 'oh that's cute' heard around the stand._

"_ANOTHER BOWL PLEASE!" Sakemo and Korisa said together._

"_WHAT!!" Iruka yelled while still eating his first bowl._

[End Flashback]

Kitara mused to herself as the four rookies and Konohamaru ate. Actually, they binged while Konohamaru ate to kill the hunger sensation. She chose to merely sit there and drink tea.

"You sure you don't want anything mom?" Sakemo asked.

"I'm sure." She could tell her children were giving her 'looks'. "Misoa? Kimiko? Tell us whom you got. You too Konohamaru." She suggested changing the subject.

Kimiko started. "I got Team 7: Uzamaki Hadoshi; Uchiha Nagi; and Uchiha Hachi."

"Are you serious?" Korisa asked after swallowing her ramen. Kimiko just gave her the official paper their Hokage gave them.

Sakemo was getting a bit more interested. "You get something like that Misoa?" He asked his cousin.

"Team 8: Inuzuka Kouga; Aburame Shiobi; Hyuuga Kenshin." Misoa also handed his paper to Sakemo

Last, there was Konohamaru. "Let me take a wild guess, you go the Ino-Shika-Cho team Uncle Asuma had?" Kitara asked.

"Yup. Team 10: Yamanaka Inoiki; Nara Shikaru; Akimichi Chouza."

"Your father must have been bored to assign these teams." Kitara mentioned to her children.

"That's what I thought." Kimiko said. She slurped up some ramen that left juices on her face. She either didn't know or didn't care because she just continued to eat. She had dug her sticks back into her bowl as a napkin appeared in front of her.

"I swear you still eat like you are one." Misoa stated as she snatched the napkin form him. She didn't say anything, she just gave him that killer glare her mother taught her when she was five.

"Thank you for the food!" Everyone shouted as they paid for their meals and got up. Konohamaru stared at the Hokage Mountain with the six heads carved in. _I'll be up there one day!_ He thought triumphantly to himself before catching up with the others.

"I'm going to head home now." Kitara said after they walked a few blocks.

"We'll go with you too." Sakemo said. Korisa just followed with the other three when Kitara suddenly stopped. "What's the matter mom?" He asked.

"Wait for it." She slightly chucked. Kimiko looked up at the shop they were in front of. _Odangos? [Dumplings?] Just figures mom would be here._ She thought to herself.

"ANKO-SAN!" They heard a scream. The said ninja walked out with Kurenai- who was looking disappointed at Anko. A man with spiky hair in a ponytail and a scar across his face ran in front of the women. As he reached for Anko, she stuck an odango stick in her mouth, cheezing the whole while.

"Th...That was my last odango stick Anko-san!" The man pointed at her accusingly.

"Oh come on Iruka-kun. It was just sitting there practically beckoning me. Besides, you don't eat sweets that often." She stated in her defense.

"True, but when I do eat them…I'd like to actually eat it!"

_Geez! These guys are like ten year olds._ Kurenai thought to herself. For the first time she noticed several presences around them. When she looked up, she saw a mirror pair of crimson eyes looking at her. "You are all out of the meeting rather early." She commented to the group.

"I guess Naruto-sama wanted to get it over with quick as possible." Misoa said to his mother. He looked over his shoulder to see Anko and Iruka still debating. "She took his sweets from him again?" He asked. She rolled her eyes as her comrades continued fighting.

"Why don't you do something Kimiko?" Korisa asked.

She raised an eyebrow at the older girl. "Why me?"

"Because…"

"Because she's YOUR mother!" Sakemo finished the sentence while he was trying to calm his father. To be honest, Iruka wasn't really mad; he was just upset Anko habitually takes his sweets without his permission.

Eventually, Iruka gave up. "Just ask next time…okay?"

"Yeah…Sure!" Anko said as she threw the bare stick over her shoulder. It landed square in the wastebasket. _Showoff._ Konohamaru thought with a smile.

"So mom, you seen dad today? I thought he was suppose to be back from his mission by now." Kimiko asked Anko

"Oh he's back alright. He was suppose to meet us here two hours ago!" Anko fumed while commenting under her breath about a 'tardy, one-eyed jerk'.

**Poof!**

"Yo gang." Kakashi greeted while leaning against the shop's wall while reading his green book. Anko marched up to him and forcefully pulled his arm down that held the book.

"Don't 'yo gang' me! You were supposed to be here over two hours ago!" She screamed at him.

Kakashi smiled behind his mask. "Sorry, but I forgot I had to turn my mission log in to the Hokage so…"

"That is such a lie! We just left there before going to Ichiraku and you weren't in sight!" Kimiko screamed. Like Anko, she couldn't stand it when her father made up lies for being late.

Kakahi gave her a shocked looked as if he didn't know she had been there the entire time."Oh, hey there Kimi-hime." Kakashi greeted his daughter while ruffling her hair. It was silver like his, but she wore it up in a style like Anko. She swore she heard Misoa and Sakemo snicker at her father's nickname for her.

"Kakashi don't do that!" Anko yelled at him.

"Huh? Don't do what?" He asked, knowing full well what she meant.

"Stop ruffling Kimiko's hair! She's not a boy you know!" She stated while smoothing her daughter's hair.

"Funny, you don't complain when _I_ do it to _you_." He stated coolly as he went back to his book.

_Gross!_ The four younger jounin and Konohamaru thought to themselves.

Kakashi knew he had really hit a nerve with Anko as he caught a stray kunai with his right hand, still reading with his left. _Whew! An inch closer and I would have lost my index and middle fingers._

"You know, they have anger management classes for that." Kakashi said while looking at Anko momentarily.

"Screw anger management! Don't talk like that in front of her!"

"You know it's a good thing you missed. I need those fingers later on." Anko readied herself to throw shurikens when Kurenai stepped between them.

"Alright you two, grow up!" Although they had been jounin longer than she had, they still had nothing but respect for her. Of everyone present, Kurenai was the oldest; so they knew it didn't take much to irritate her.

"Er…hey mom! We got our teams today! Look at who we got!" Misoa said nervously as he handed Kurenai the paper. A smile graced her delicate features. "Have fun. The Inuzuka on your squad is louder than the one I had…so I hear." She added quickly as Misoa raised an eyebrow.

"Inuzuka?" Anko inquired. "Let me see your paper Kimiko!" Anko nearly demanded. As Anko read the paper, Kakashi read over her shoulder. He just smiled and went back to his book. "Iruka? Were you bored when you made teams this time?" Anko asked him.

_Everyone keeps asking me that._ "No! You all do know that I'm not the only instructor at the academy that makes these?"

"Yeah…but you're the most popular…Iruka-SENSEI!" Konohamaru teased.

"Okay laugh it up, but your team is gonna give you a run for your money." Iruka laughed while Konohamaru frowned.

"Who did you get?" Kakashi asked; his eyes still glued to his book.

Konohamaru smiled and looked up to the sky while crossing his arms. "I got a loud-mouth, lazy, and a glutton." He finished while closing his eyes. He savored the wind that passed by. Silence fell over the group until the wind passed.

Sakemo and Korisa looked up to the sky where their uncle was staring. _Mom always did say that's what Uncle Asuma thought of his team._ Sakemo thought to himself.

Iruka saw Kitara drop her head. Her relationship with her father's side of the family was shaky, but she still loved them. She felt Iruka wrap his arm around her waist and she leaned into him.

A stronger breeze came by that caused Kurenai and Misoa to look up also. She gave a smile that said 'okay Asuma, you've got our attention.' She walked up behind Misoa and placed her left hand on his shoulder. He returned the gesture by placing his left hand on top of hers, squeezing it slightly.

Anko and Kimiko settled down to enjoy the breeze. Even Kakashi brought his face from his book to enjoy the scene. "So where were you all headed before now?" Kakashi asked to break the silence.

"I'm on my way home." Kitara said

"And we were going too." Sakemo stated as he nugged his sister with his elbow.

"I guess I'll head home too. Classes are done for the day and I've turned in my logs into the officials." Iruka agreed.

"What were you going to do Misoa?" Kurenai asked her son.

"Kimiko and I were going to head over to one of the training grounds and spar."

Anko cracked a sly grin. "You guys still don't know how you're going to test them? Do you?" She asked the duo.

"I have a couple ideas but I may just use the bell test." Kimiko stated with a grin that matched Anko's. Misoa just shrugged his shoulders-a silent way of saying 'I have no idea what I'm going to do."

"You brought it on yourselves. The two of you knew well in advance that you were going to be in charge of rookies. That thought alone should have help prepare you for…what?" Anko asked when everyone was staring at her.

"Well you just sound so…?" Kurenai looked around for the right words.

"…grown up…" Iruka

"…mature…" Kitara

"…much like a mom…" Konohamaru

"…not crazy…" Sakemo

"…non-psychotic…" Korisa

"…normal…" Misoa and Kimiko

They all stated at random times. Kakashi chose the later- remain silent. Anko squinted her eyes and balled her fists. "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSE TO MEAN! I'M MATURE, GROWN UP, AND ACT LIKE A MOTHER!" She yelled.

Konohamaru was tempted to hide behind his sister when he saw her smile. "What about the other three qualities?" She asked her longtime comrade.

"They're on my to-do list." Anko said as she turned her head to keep everyone from seeing her blush.

"How can you work on not being crazy?" Sakemo said sarcastically that caused giggles throughout the group. He leapt to the side to avoid being hit with one of Anko's signature kunais. Too bad for him it cut through the rubber band that held his ponytail up. "What was that for?" He asked as his hair flew to his shoulders.

"For that 'crazy' crock!" She bellowed at him.

Kakashi looked on as the two argued. Korisa and Konohamaru weren't much help, as they instigated the argument. Kurenai, Iruka, and Kitara laughed amongst each other. He couldn't help but smile when he saw Kimiko and Misoa playing rock-paper-scissors. The rules were: the loser would help instigate. After three quick rounds, Kimiko beat Misoa's paper with her scissors. He peered over Kimiko's shoulder and shouted, "HEY SAKEMO! YOU LOOK LIKE A GIRL RIGHT NOW!"

That little distraction caused Sakemo five strands of hair. "SHUT UP MISOA!"

"Okay kids settle down. You're starting to make a scene." Kakashi said coolly as he walked beside Anko. She glared at him before digging in her kunai pouch. She took out a thick rubber band and stuck it on her right thumb and middle finger. After stretching it, she sent it propelling over to Sakemo who caught it with ease.

"Just watch it next time kid!" She said dangerously at him. He nodded and said a slight 'thank you' to her.

Kitara looked up toward the sky as she felt time pass by. "Konohamaru? It's getting late." She told her brother. Indeed it was as he looked at his watch and saw he was really behind schedule.

"That's just great." He grumbled to himself.

"What's the matter?" Iruka asked his former student.

"Homaru." Was all Konohamaru said.

"Your wife is **so** gonna nag you! You were supposed to pick that brat up minutes ago!" Korisa picked at him.

He just stared at his niece as she called his son a 'brat'. "Who's more of a brat than you were?"

"Sakemo was." She answered. He just glared at her as he finished putting his long hair in a ponytail.

"I'm gonna head out now. Ja ne!" He pecked Kitara on the cheek as everyone said his or her farewell to him.

"Konohamaru-kun? Do you mind giving this to Hinata for me?" Kurenai stopped him before he left.

"Sure thing!" As said as he took the papers from her and stuck them into his back pocket. She pecked him on the cheek motherly which caused him to blush.

He put his hands in the sign of the sheep, but before activating it he turned and looked at Kimiko and Misoa. "Don't be late tomorrow!" With that said, he disappeared.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Kimiko asked dumbfounded. The seniors-except Kakashi- smiled because they knew he was comparing them to Kakashi's excessive tardiness.

"I think he was referring to you, **Kimi-hime**." Misoa joked. Everyone, even Kakashi laughed.

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Hyuuga! A New Day!**

Konohamaru walked down the streets of Konoha and marveled at how much the village had grown since Naruto became Hokage. True it was always a prosperous village, but the economy had gone up tenfold. He truly was worthy of the name Hokage…but then again, Konohamaru already knew that since he was eight.

He stopped walking as he stood in front of the entrance to his wife's family. In bold words, he read the name.

Hyuuga

Though it was not advised upon, he married the Hyuuga clan's youngest heir…

Hyuuga Hanabi- or now called Sarutobi Hanabi

_Maybe we were too young._ He thought as they married and had a son by the time she was 18 and he had just turned 19. He had vowed to protect and take care of his new family, no matter the circumstances. _And I won't go back on my word!_ He promised himself.

Standing at the entrance, he saw his 10-year-old son, Homaru, sitting on the front porch to the entrance of the clans' home. To his right was his mother, Hanabi; beside her were Neji and his wife (and former teammate) Ten-Ten. On his left, it was Hinata; beside her was Lord Hiashi- clan leader of Hyuuga.

They were all very inventively watching the sparring in front of them. One of the them was a 12 year old boy. Like all Hyuuga's, he had pupil-less white eyes. He wore traditionally Hyuuga sparring clothes, had his long and dark brown hair pulled back with a tie around toward the end, tape on his hands, and was focused on the match at hand. He had complete control and was the offensive one of the duo.

This was Neji and Ten-Ten's son, Hyuuga Kenshin.

The other boy was the complete opposite. He was not weak; he just couldn't keep up with the other boy. He had spiky blonde hair and blue eyes with a black pupil. Like Kenshin, he wore traditional Hyuuga sparring clothes, but had no tape on his hands. He was a few inches shorter then Kenshin, making it harder for his blows to connect with him. Right now, he was on the defense; blocking any and every attack that came his way. He refused to give up, even though the match wasn't going his way. He had a look of determination and willpower that came from his parents.

This was Naruto and Hinata's son, Uzamaki Hadoshi.

The match had been going on for a while and both were running low on chakra. Homaru clinched his fist in frustration. He wanted to spar with them badly, but he wasn't quite on their level yet. He gasped out loud as he saw Kenshin's knee connect with Hadoshi's stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Then with one swift move, Kenshin sent his right fist flying into Hadoshi's face. Hadoshi wasn't sure where it landed, but he knew he had definitely made contact.

Hadoshi skidded to a stop a few meters away, clutching his stomach. Homaru knew the match was over then. In a panic, he leaned forward to help his fallen cousin when a hand grabbed his left elbow.

It was his Aunt Hinata. She shook her head no and motioned for him to sit back down. He was confused. Did she honestly think he could continue to fight after such a mighty blow? He looked at Kenshin who still had his fighting stance, never dropping his guard. "But he can't win…"

"Sit Down Homaru!" Hanabi hissed. He did what he was told and looked between the sisters. Had they gone mad? Any other time, a match would have been called off, so why is now so different? A dry cough brought his attention back to the match.

Hadoshi was on his knees holding his stomach with his right arm. His eyes shot at Kenshin, who just smirked at him. Hadoshi was frustrated and his eyes grew wider while his left hand started to shake. He ground his teeth together and his breathing had increased.

He was so much like his father…_Too much like him!_ Hinata thought as she saw the changes in her son. Since he was like Naruto, she knew what would come next if she didn't intervene.

First was the frustration. Next was the yelling/name calling. Then the rational thinking and concentration would go out the window. Finally would be charging into a fight without a clear mind and getting beat up. A quality that could get you killed in the real world._ He's frustrated. There goes the first hurdle._ She thought. _The second in 3,2,1…_

"Hey you jerk! You were only suppose to use juk…"

"ON YOUR FEET HADOSHI!!" Hinata ordered her son. This was maybe one of the rare occasions you would hear the heiress yell. If it had been her when she was his age, she would have given up. But the Naruto in him kept him rolling. It's also the temper that causes him matches, unlike how she stayed levelheaded in a battle. She was not going to allow her son to make the same mistakes they did. It was amazing what motherhood could change in a person.

Hadoshi complied with his mother. After taking a few quick breathes, his focus was back on Kenshin. After pulling himself up to his feet, he wiped the blood from his mouth and went back into a fighting stance.

"Let's go!" He said as they charged for each other again. Like before, they went at each other in full force. Injuries and bruises pushed aside, Hadoshi was a fighting machine. He refused to quit in front of his family, even if he did loose to his cousin. He wasn't going to give up!

Hinata saw the spark in his eyes. _Indeed he's so much like his father._ She thought to herself.

Even without Buyakugen, you could see the chakra when their hands collided to block a blow. In one unorthodox move, Hadoshi did a leg sweep to make Kenshin jump over it. As he was in the air, Hadoshi raised his palm to connect with his back. He had almost reached him when Kenshin spun around and grabbed him by the wrist. With the chakra directed to his hand, Kenshin yanked Hadoshi forward and flipped him on his back.

Landing a few meters away, Kenshin kept his fighting stance, still not dropping his defense. _How the hell did he counter that?_ Hadoshi asked himself in frustration. He brought his palms up behind his ears and pushed his body up, causing him to propel to his feet. He turned around to face Kenshin as he too went back to a fighting pose. What he saw made a growl come to his throat.

Kenshin had his Buyakugan activated. Hadoshi looked at his cousin with envy. He wasn't mad or jealous, just extremely frustrated. Even at the age of 12 with divine Hyuuga blood coursing through his veins, he had yet to come into his bloodline limit.

He had studied enough textbooks to know where the chakra points are and how the body works, but it wasn't the same as actually seeing them with your own two eyes.

Both boys prepared themselves to charge at each other again until a voice caught their attention.

"That's enough for today. Take a break and tend to your wounds." Hiashi said as he stood up to walk into his personal study. Before entering the sliding door a bird flew over Hiashi. Without looking back he spoke to the Kenshin and Hadoshi. "You both did good just then, and congratulations on graduating the academy." With that he retreated to his study.

Though they knew he couldn't see it, they both bowed in respect to the elder Hyuuga. "Sir." They both said. Unlucky for Hadoshi, the pain from his abdomen caused him to fall forward. He looked up and saw Kenshin offering him his hand- for support and a truce offering. Hadoshi took it and Kenshin allowed him to lean on him for support.

"You're still a jerk though." Hadoshi said quietly to him.

Kenshin just smirked. "And you're still a unorthodox loud-mouth." They both chuckled in good humor.

Homaru and Hanabi got up and let the boys sit down. Neji and Hinata each stood in front of their sons and activated their bloodline limit. This was a usual way to see if any internal damage had been done.

"Hold still." Neji ordered his son. He used his left middle and index finger to poke the boy slightly in front of his clavicle bone.

"Why did you do that?" Kenshin asked his father as the sensation passed.

"He managed to push that chakra point. That is why you weren't able to put out that much chakra to your right hand. I just re-opened it." He explained to his son. Kenshin figured he must have done it earlier when they had first started sparring.

"Nothing serious here. You'll be sore for a few hours but after hot bath tonight, you'll feel fine in the morning." Hinata announced proudly to her son after her exam.

Ten-Ten had went inside and brought out a tray with two cups of tea. "You two must be famished. Have a drink." She offered the two.

"Itadakimosu." They both said before drinking.

"Are you just gonna stand over there or are you coming over here?" Hanabi asked Konohamaru.

"I was enjoying the show and didn't want to interrupt." She said as he walked over and pecked her on her lips. "Hey kiddo!" Konohamaru stated as he ruffled his son's hair. Homaru looked like Konohamaru, but had Hanabi's eyes. His hair was also the same color as his father's, but it spiked downward. "Oh Hinata-oneechan! Kurenai-san asked me to give this to you." He said as he retrieved the paper.

Hinata took it and read it over. She just smiled and folded the paper up "Thank you Konohamaru-kun."

"So that's why you were late! You were suppose to meet us here ages ago!" Hanabi hissed at her husband.

"Oh come on! I had left the meeting with the other instructors and ran into Kurenai when we left Ichira…um…" He stopped when he saw the vein pop on his wife's head.

"You went out and ate ramen when you knew I had made plans to cook!"

"Well…I didn't eat a lot. It was more like a snack…the others binged ramen…" He said truthfully. He couldn't get the rest of his plea out as Hadoshi tugged on him.

"Hey! Hey! Uncle Konohamaru? You were with the other instructors right? Tell me who is my sensei! Pleeease!" He pleaded with his hands together.

_It's amazing how he has this much energy after taking such a beating._ Konohamaru thought to himself. "You'll find out tomorrow when you and your team meet him or her." He said to both Hadoshi and Kenshin. Like Neji, Kenshin didn't say anything, but Konohamaru knew he wanted to know who his sensei was.

"Oh that's right! Who's on your squad Kenshin?" Ten-Ten asked her son.

"Inuzuka Kouga and Shiobi." He said without looking at her.

"Ha ha ha! Y…You…You're on the same squad as…as your girlfriend! Ha ha ha ha…ha…ha ha ha!" Hadoshi burst out in a fit of laughter.

"Urasai! [Shut up!] I've already explained Shiobi and I are just comrades, nothing more." He said while staring at Hadoshi.

"That's what you said about Shikaru." Hadoshi continued to tease.

Kenshin made a move towards Hadoshi, but Homaru clung to his left arm. "He's just joking with you!" Homaru stated in Hadoshi's defense.

He was about to open his mouth to say more but a tugging sensation on his left ear caused him to suddenly yelp in pain. "Ow ow ow! Ok Ok! I'll stop!" He yelled.

"Good. That's quite enough of that." Hinata stated as she let go of his ear.

Hanabi put her anger for her husband aside to ask her sister something. "Shiobi? Hinata isn't she the daughter of that weird guy that wears shades from your squad?"

"Yes she is and her father's name is Aburame Shino." She answered her sister

Hanabi then smiled smugly at Kenshin. "So…you and Shikaru…"

"Are just friends!" Kenshin stated.

Konohamaru raised an eyebrow at the name Shikaru. She was the daughter of Nara Shikamaru and his wife Temari. She often came over to play some form of Chinese board game called Mah Jong. Most Hyuugas' knew how to play, but the frequent users of the board were Shikaru, Kenshin, Ten-Ten, and Hanabi (or whoever else wanted to play). He didn't think of anything other than friendship…but Hadoshi could be exaggerating the union. He was jarred back to reality as his son called his name.

"Hey dad! Guess what?" He didn't wait for a response. "Hadoshi got the Uchiha twins on his team!" Homaru smiled but Hadoshi didn't. He had this disappointing look on his face.

"You don't look too happy about the arrangement." Konohamaru commented on the look. Hadoshi still remained quiet- clearly a Hyuuga trait he inherited.

"Hey everybody! What's going on?" A cheery voice got everyone's attention. There was their Hokage standing in front of them. His orange attire had changed a bit to resemble a cross between an ANBU and standard jounin uniform. His haite (headband) was still tied around his forehead, but the cloth hung down behind his neck. He also wore the fire robe that resembled the Yodaime (4th Hokage) old one. The most memorable item was the necklace of the Sondaime (1st Hokage) he won from Tsunade years ago.

Naruto frowned as Neji, Ten-Ten, Kenshin, Hanabi, and Homaru bowed and referred to him as 'Hokage-sama'. His face lit up entirely as he spoke, "(1) I'm in your home, so I should greet you all graciously." Naruto said as he lowered his head toward Neji, Ten-Ten, and Kenshin. "(2) We're all family, so there is no need to be formal." He said then planted a soft kiss on Hinata's forehead. That's when everyone loved abut Naruto- his personality brought nothing but joy.

"You're here earlier than expected." Hinata stated rather than just asking Naruto why he was there early.

"Well, I finished early today. In fact, I'm just leaving the Uchiha compound. Sakura-chan asked me to give you this." He dug in his pocket and gave her the paper. Like with Kurenai's she folded the paper and put it in her pocket.

"You had your kage bunshins do your work for you today?" Neji asked. Naruto just scratched the back of his head and smiled sheepishly. "Hn…" Neji smirked before looking at Hadoshi. He still had not spoken since Homaru announced his team. He didn't even acknowledge Naruto was a few feet in front of him.

Naruto felt Neji's eyes on him so he directed his toward the Hyuuga prodigy. Neji nudged is head toward Hadoshi for Naruto to look at him. When he did he slightly frowned at the face. _I know what that look means. I didn't think it would affect him this much._ Naruto thought. That face was one he made a lot- failure.

He was the heir to the Hyuuga line after his mother. Yet he couldn't even activate his bloodline limit. To make matters worse, his teammates were siblings who also had a bloodline limit they could activate at any time (though he never saw them activate them). He was beginning to feel inferior as a shinobi and Hyuuga heir.

A hand ruffling his hair brought him back to reality. He looked up and saw his father's loving smile. It was hard to ignore the number one, hyperactive, knuckleheaded ninja in Konoha. "You so high and mighty you can't greet your old man after a hard day's work?" He joked with his son.

Hadoshi closed his eyes and smiled just like Naruto. He knew that was Naruto's way of saying 'everything is gonna work out right'. A sliding noise caused everyone to turn around toward the house. A young servant girl came out and dropped to her knees when she saw the blonde Hokage. "Please forgive my intrusion, but Hiashi-sama wishes for everyone present to join him for a celebration dinner in one half hour." With that said, she excused herself and went back inside.

The group began their entrance to the house when everyone stopped to see that Naruto and Hanabi had not yet moved. "What's the matter with you two? Aren't you hungry?" Konohamaru asked as the thought of fine Hyuuga cuisine flooded his mind.

"But I had made plans to cook." Hanabi began to pout.

"Father is inviting us to have dinner with him. It has been a while since we all ate as a family so let's not disappoint him." Hinata suggested to her sister. Her attention then directed towards Naruto.

"Well…it still weirds me out that he knows I'm here and he's not even present." Naruto said. Every one snickered at the blonde Hokage as they made their way inside to wash up. _He's still a dunce._ Neji rolled his eyes in good humor as he took hold of Ten-Ten's hand. She followed him inside the compound to head toward their room.

"Naruto is a great Hokage, but he is still a little dense." Ten-Ten teased. Even she knew Hiashi could use the bloodline limit anytime someone with a huge amount of chakra entered the home.

"Hn." Neji agreed. Neji had changed into his casual Hyuuga attire and Ten-Ten wore a long Chinese style robe. He didn't understand the woman's fascination with Chinese style, but it matched her personality. They exited their room and made their way down the hall. Coming around a corner, he heard running. Before he had time to react, a yellow blur smashed into his stomach. Neji placed his hand on the wall for support. The blow didn't hurt him; it just knocked the wind out of him.

"Ow ow ow…" A boy was on the ground holding his sore head. Ten-Ten brought the boy up and examined his head.

"No external damage done. What's 1 plus 1?" She asked.

"2 why?" He answered.

"To make sure you didn't have any internal damage." She teases at the boy while helping him to his feet.

Neji looked at the boy and noticed he had been holding back tears. It was probably from earlier that day when he was frustrated, but every Hyuuga was conditioned to learn at an early age: _Don't cry from pity, a lost battle, or hurt feelings._ In a way, Neji felt sorry for the kid because he knew he tried hard as he could.

"Are you alright Hadoshi-sama?" Neji asked out of pure concern that made Ten-Ten do a double take on him. Even he didn't use that tone with their son but on a couple of occasions.

Hadoshi bit his bottom lip. He knew he wasn't worthy of such a prestigious honorific. Thinking of the words of his father, he allowed those harsh feelings to pass, as he looked his family member in the eyes with a smile. "Uncle Neji? Father said earlier we were a family. So there is no need to use such an honorific with me." With that, Hadoshi bowed his head to Neji. "And I apologize for running into you. I should be more careful where I'm going."

"Urg...no. You don't have anything to be sorry for Hadoshi. Mistakes happen, don't worry about it." Neji tried to respond to the respect he's getting from the boy. Hadoshi lifted his head and grinned like Naruto.

"Well…at least I got you to say me name." He teased at Neji. Neji just smirked and patted the boy on the head as Hadoshi ran off down the hall he was headed.

Ten-Ten looked at Neji with disbelief then giggled with a blush on her cheeks. "Nani? [What?]" Neji asked her.

"You're going soft Hyuuga Neji." She teased at him. He was ready to retort when a brown blur ran into him. Neji was relieved that the impact wasn't as harsh like with Hadoshi a few minutes ago.

The child jumped to his feet and bowed to them. "Sorry about that but have you two seen Hadoshi run this way?" Homaru asked in a panic.

"He ran back that way. Is something the matter?" Ten-Ten asked the young man.

"Not really. He left his robes home, so he's going to see if Kenshin will lend him one. If he doesn't, I have some he can wear because I still have to grow into them. Well, ja ne!" He waved as he ran off.

"Hn."

"What is it?" Ten-Ten asked.

"Those three. How they get along so well despite their different personalities." He thought about his cousins: Hinata and Hanabi. They were never close at that age. Neji had hated the Main House, Hinata was too intimidated to speak to him, and Hanabi sneered at him while turning her nose up whenever they passed by each other.

Ten-Ten leaned onto his shoulder and he placed his hand behind her back. "Are you complaining?" She asked her husband.

Neji just smirked and held onto her tighter. "I didn't think so." She said triumphantly.

Naruto stood and stared at Hinata as she put on her robes. Even at the age of 33, Hinatas' beauty marveled him. Her hair was longer, running past her shoulders. Like most Hyuugas, she tied it back for the formal dinner. Her eyes still carried that softness in them that he fell in love with.

"You're staring Naruto-kun." She said to her husband as she tried to tie her obi around her.

His expression took on a bit of a shock as he noted her back was turned to him. _That Hyuuga bloodline really weirds me out._ He thought. Hinata grunted in frustration as she again tried to tie the obi in the back.

"Here." Naruto offered as he walked behind her and tied it. His hand wandered to her hips and rested in front of her abdomen. She placed her hands on top of his and they enjoyed each other's warmth.

Never would they have imagined they would find love in each other. Naruto had been alone all his childhood until Iruka and the Third Hokage intervened. Hinata herself was the subject of reticule in her own home for being deemed a 'weak heir'. Together they found happiness, love, and a family.

While she was thinking, Naruto had been laying soft kisses on her neck. A gasp from Hinata brought her back as his hand rose closer to her assets. The next thing she noted was that one of Narutos' hands went missing. She felt a tugging sensation on her back, then turned around and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You just tied it up." She giggled.

"I suddenly had a change of heart." He said with an evil grin.

"Don't start. We have to meet the others for dinner…then we can finish when we go home." She reasoned with him. He started to pout but then suddenly put on his fox-like smile.

"You'll have to promise me though." He said as his forehead touched hers, now free of his hiate.

"I never go back on my word." She whispered as they leaned in for a kiss. She deepened it as he leaned in more. His hands rubbed her spine and he was tempted to pick her up when…

"Are you done in there? It's time to meet father." They heard Hanabis' voice.

"The two of you can finish what you're doing later." Konohamarus' voice teased.

The door slid back and Naruto emerged looking rather irritated. "The two of you really know how spoil a mood." Naruto grumbled.

Konohamaru was a bit relieved to see Naruto still in the clothes he arrived in. When they married the Hyuuga heiresses, they each moved to a different part of town. Konohamaru, of course, resided his family at the Sarutobi estate.

As a wedding gift from Tsunade and Jiraiya, they built the Uzamaki estate a couple of blocks away from the Hokage Tower. It was also a small hike to his old apartment that he still kept vacant.

"You all are rather loud." Ten-Ten commented as they neared the four. They both didn't have their hiate on (Neji had his bandage around his head though).

"Naruto-niisan is upset because we interrupted them…"

"BAKA!" Naruto yelled as he bopped Konohamaru in front of his head. For the first couple of seconds, he wished he had his hiate on.

"Na…Nani? [What?]" Konohamaru asked as he rubbed his sore spot.

_They'll never grow up!_ Hanabi thought of the two in front of her.

Neji heard footsteps behind him so he turned to see who it was. The three boys were walking fast to catch up with the adults.

"Slow down! The food isn't going anywhere." Ten-Ten giggled at them. A growling noise was heard. Kenshin and Hadoshi turned their heads to keep everyone form seeing them blush.

"You all must have trained pretty hard to have an appetite like that." Naruto teased. Homaru was laughing at them until his own stomach betrayed him. Everyone- save Neji- was laughing when the servant girl from earlier came in and bowed.

"Pardon my intrusion again, but Hiashi-sama wishes for you to join him if you are all 'done standing in the hall'." With that said, she made her exit.

"How can you stand that Ten-Ten?" Naruto asked referring to the Hyuuga bloodlimit.

She looked at him with an amused expression before shrugging her shoulders. "I'm just use to it." She replied as they walked inside the banquet room. Hiashi was already seated and waiting for them.

"Minna [Everyone], be seated. Naruto-dono, please take your seat at the end of the table." Everyone complied with Hiashi and took their respected places.

The seating arrangements went as followed: Hiashi at the end, Neji on his left, Kenshin, Homaru, Konohamaru, Naruto at the other end of the table, Hinata, Hadoshi, Ten-Ten, Hanabi, and ending back with Hiashi.

It is customary (for Hyuugas anyway) for the head(s) to sit at each end and family/friends on the sides with their children between them. For Naruto to be asked to sit at the other head of the table was a huge honor. The ends were reserved for: Head of the family and honored guests. One could only assume Naruto sat there because he was Hiashis' son-in-law as well as village Hokage.

Small talk was made during the dinner. The majority being everyone catching up on lost time (the adults anyway). Hiashi's all-seeing eyes wandered around the table at his family. This was the first time in decades did a peaceful meal such as this one occurred.

He saw Neji; all hatred extinguished from his heart and Ten-Ten began a new chapter in his life.

He saw Hinata; the heir he once deemed as 'weak' that now was the will of the clan. After marrying, she still vowed to keep the title of clan heir. That proved alone she was not weak and had a will of her own.

He saw Hanabi; the woman who once was a child who would lay her life on the line for her clan. Konohamaru showed her there was more to life than just being powerful for your family…you must be strong for yourself.

His eyes then darted between the three boys. Hadoshi was rolling a pea around in his hand as everyone was talking. Thinking no one would notice he plucked a pea at Kenshin's forehead. Needless to say, Kenshin was shocked. It didn't hurt, but Hadoshi had put enough chakra into the pluck for him to feel a slight sting.

"Ow ow ow! Gomen! [Sorry!] Gomen!" Hadoshi pleaded as Hinata tugged on his right ear this time.

"Honestly Hadoshi, act your age." Hinata said as she let go of his ear.

Homaru was trying hard not to burst out laughing while Kenshin smirked as he wiped his bare forehead with a napkin. Hiashi closed his eyes and thought about how relieved he was to not have to place the caged bird mark on Kenshin.

_When I become Hokage, I'll change the Hyuuga!_ Hiashi recalled from Naruto and Neji's fight at the Chuunin Exams. He heard the laughter of not the Main and Branch house of Hyuuga…he heard the laughter of one united family.

Indeed you did change the Hyuuga Lord Hokage.

"Father? Are you well?" Hinata asked when Hiashi got extremely quiet.

"I'm fine." He replied as he opened his eyes. Everyone was done eating so he figured to move onto the next phase. "If you are all done eating, let's go into the next room for entertainment." He announced as he stood up to walk.

Neji, Hinata, and Hanabi just sat there in shock. Dinner _and _entertainment? _Maybe he's the one going soft?_ Neji thought. Everyone walked into the room and saw other members of the family. Everyone mingled and congratulated Kenshin and Hadoshi on making it to genin. Music was being played, there was dancing, and special presentations were held. It was getting late and Hanabi wanted to get Homaru home so he could rest up for class tomorrow. But when she looked around, she noted he was nowhere to in sight.

"Where is Homaru?" She asked no one in particular but all she received were shrugs and 'I don't knows'.

"Hadoshi have you seen Ho…" Hinata began to ask as she noted her son too was gone.

Ten-Ten did a quick mental sweep of the room and noticed Kenshin was missing also. Out of a whim, she called out his name. "Kenshin?" Naruto, Konohamaru, and Neji split up to look for the boys but found nothing. Hanabi was about to freak when Hinata spoke up.

"Did anyone see father leave?" She asked the group.

"He excused himself earlier and said he would be back soon, but he hasn't returned yet." Neji answered. Hanabi's face brightened up quickly.

"In that case, I know exactly where they are." She stated. Hinata thanked the guests for coming and assured them everything was fine as they went into their respected rooms.

Everyone followed Hanabi until they reached the house dojo. Hinata had grim memories of her failed practices there, but now they were put aside. They entered the room and saw a sight that noone would imagine possible…

There was Hiashi sitting with Homaru in his arms fast asleep. By his feet, Kenshin and Hadoshi had their backs to each other and were also sleep. All four were clearly exhausted judging by the looks on their faces. Konohamaru nudged his wife by the shoulder and motioned for her to lean in. "How did you know they would be in here?" He asked while whispering.

A scoff came from her as if she was insulted. "Come on! What is the one thing those four have in common?" She didn't bother waiting for a reply. "Training. My guess if after Father excused himself to the dojo, Kenshin and Hadoshi followed him to ask for more training tips- seeing as they all will meet their instructors tomorrow. And Homaru, not wanting to be left out, followed behind them. They are all truly predictable." Hanabi finished.

Naruto, Neji, and Konohamaru each helped their sons to their feet. "We should head home now. Later Neji, Ten-Ten and Kenshin! Thanks for your hospitality Hiashi-sama." Naruto thanked as he and Konohamaru bowed to the leader.

"Hn." That was Hiashi for 'You're welcome.'

They had almost reached the exit when a loud thunderclap roared overhead. Before anyone could speak, rain poured down upon Konoha. "Of all the rotten…" Naruto grumbled.

"Seems as if you are staying tonight. Hadoshi and Homaru may share a spare room down the hall. Hinata and Hanabi, both of your rooms are vacant for your use. Just keep your…affection for each other control. Goodnight." With that, Hiashi retreated to his room.

"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd swear he knew it was going to rain." Naruto commented as they walked down the hall.

"He did." Neji replied with a passive face.

"What!" Naruto yelled. It was enough to jar Hadoshi and Homaru awake as well as other members of the house.

"Naruto!" Ten-Ten hissed for him to be quiet.

"S…sorry." Naruto said quietly. Out of the corner of his eye, Konohamaru could have sworn he saw Neji smile and flat out almost chuckle. Naruto put his hands behind his neck as they walked. He listened to the pouring rain with the occasional thunderclaps as lightening lit up the home. "It's gonna be a real bummer in the morning." He complained.

"What makes you say that?" Konohamaru asked.

"We'll have to get up extra early to go home. While we're there, we have to take a bath, change clothes, and get into our daily routines by 8:00am! Who's to say the rain won't stick around until morning?" He asked in irritation.

Konohamaru groaned, realizing he lives a little further from Naruto's house. Meaning he'll have to get up earlier than them. "Yeah, it's really going to suck." He agreed with Naruto. Upon entering the spare room, everyone bid Hadoshi and Homaru goodnight and eventually Kenshin as they neared his room. Hinata and Hanabi's room were across the hall from each other so Neji and Ten-Ten bade them goodnight.

"You shouldn't tease Naruto like that Neji! He could have woken up the whole house with his voice." Ten-Ten scolded Neji as she changed her clothes. Neji already had on his nightclothes was waiting for Ten-Ten to join him in bed.

"What do you mean?" Neji played dumb with a straight face-something that always got under Ten-Ten's skin.

"I mean don't make him second guess himself. You could have told him it was going to rain. Heck, I even saw the clouds in the distance while the boys were training!" Her voice lifted a bit as she flopped down on the bed.

"Ten-Ten. You're going to wake everyone up with your loud voice." He said, his face still passive. She turned her body so she could look at his profile.

I do not have a loud…!" She started before his lips connected with hers. He broke away and looked her in the eyes.

"Were you saying something?" He asked

An evil grin crossed her face as she slipped a little closer to him. Just at quick she frowned. "But Hiashi-sama said…"

"For **them** to keep their affection under control. We live here so the comment doesn't apply to us."

"You're a genius." She said as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

""I know."

She was about to retort when his lips silenced her for a second time.


	3. Chapter 3

**3: New Teams! Same Style!**

Kuso! Kuso! I'm gonna be late!" Hadoshi cursed silently as he ran toward the academy. His parents had gotten him up extra early and made him walk the whole way home. When they finally go there, he was instructed to get ready for school. He did as he was told, but figured he could catch a quick nap before classes officially began. Apparently he was wrong since he now had less than 5 minutes to make it on time. Of all days today Konoha seemed to extra busy. He had to weave in and out of people until he reached the academy doors. He ran into classroom to see everyone seated and staring at him.

"Class is about to begin. Please be seated Hadoshi." Iruka instructed. He took his seat beside his team members and waited for Iruka-sensei to continue. "Now that we're all here let's begin. Yesterday you found out who your team members were. Today you will meet your sensei. When he or she comes in, please do as they instruct. From this moment on, they are in charge of you. Well, do your best everyone." With his speech finished, he left the classroom.

Before anyone had a chance to speak, a few jounin came into the classroom. The first stepped forward and surveyed the room. "Team 3, follow me." Three students across the room stood up and left with the jounin.

Another male stepped forward and looked over. "Team 2." He simply said and exited with his genin.

Next was a face the majority of the room recognized. He wore a standard jounin uniform but had the fire temple cloth hanging in front of him. His eyes were crimson like his mothers (a major plus for many of the girls).

He looked at the first row and saw Hadoshi sitting next to the Uchiha twins Nagi and Hachi. Scanning the room further, he saw a plump boy with orange-red hair sticking up. Beside him was a boy with blonde shoulder length hair pulled behind his ears. Next to him was a girl with greenish-blue eyes. She had the front of her hair braided up with two spiky brown ponytails poking out. He recognized them from the times he'd go over to Shikamaru-sensei's house. _Too bad they're not on my team._ He thought as he acknowledged them with a nod of his head, which they returned.

Doing another scan of the room, he found the three he was looking for. "Team 8 follow me." Misoa instructed. Hyuuga Kenshin stood up with two others. One was a girl with a long-sleeve sky blue sweatshirt that could have passed for a short dress. Her hair had natural stringy curls, which by the way hung in her face. To add to her attire, she had on a pair of shades that she wore everyday. This girl was Shiobi, daughter of Aburame Shino and his wife Isarabi from the wave country.

The next boy beside her had light brown hair that looked a mess. It was spiky, yet it seemed to go everywhere. He had two maroon marks on each of his cheeks. His black under shirt was of average length and he wore a brownish overcoat that zipped halfway up. Beside him walked an off brown collie that came to his knees. These two were Inuzuka Kouga and his female nin-dog Michi.

As Misoa walked out the door, Konohamaru and Kimiko came in behind him. Konohamaru looked very tired so he didn't bother asking his cousin what was wrong with him. "Have fun." He said as he passed them with his team.

Konohamaru walked in first and immediately spotted his team. "Come with me Team 10." He said to the three as he waited for them to walk to him. They were the genin Misoa had acknowledged when he first came into the room. The blonde was Ino's son, the girl was Shikamaru's, and the 'plump' one was Choji's. Their respected names were Inoiki, Shikaru, and Chouza. Before leaving with his team, he saw Hadoshi out of the corner of his eyes. _Do good kid._ He thought as he exited with his team.

Hadoshi, Nagi, and Hachi felt someone staring at them so they directed their attention toward the door. There was a young jounin girl with the standard uniform on staring at them. _So she's our sensei? _ They all thought at the same time.

"Come on." She said without asking what squad they were on. She knew of them, but she didn't know them. She didn't bother to look to see if they were following her, though she could sense their presence behind her. They continued walking until they reached the dojo that the academy used for kunai and taijutsu practices. Kimiko looked as if she was going to lead them upstairs, instead she sat on the third step and stared at them.

"So…" Kimiko started.

"So…what?" Nagi asked, slightly irritated.

"So…what do you plan on doing?" Kimiko asked the group.

"What do you mean by that?" Hadoshi asked. Hachi had yet to contribute to the conversation.

"What I mean is what are your future plans? Tell me what you wish to achieve/goals/ambitions/etc. You know, things down that line." She then darted her eyes to Hachi. "Starting with you, introduce yourself." Hachi made a grunting sound and stuffed his hands into his pants.

"My name is Uchiha Hachi. My goal is to be a better shinobi than my father."

"That it?" Kimiko asked

"Pretty much." He replied with a no caring face.

"Alright kunoichi, you're up." Kimiko addressed the female on her team.

"Uchiha Nagi. My goal is serve on the Konoha ANBU squad." Kimiko looked as if was mentally asking her if she was finished. "That's it." Nagi replied

"Alright blonde." She said to Hadoshi.

"I'm Uzamaki Hadoshi and my dream is to be a powerful juken user and make my family proud!" He said enthusiastically.

She inwardly raised an eyebrow at him then looked at her whole group. _They've got big dreams. Big but realistic nonetheless._ "Have you all eaten breakfast?" She asked them.

"Somewhat." Hadoshi answered, remembering he just grabbed a snack because he was running late.

"It's 8:30 now, so go eat and meet me at training ground 3 with your equipment and tools. I'd prefer it if you got there before noon." She then got up to leave.

"Hey! You didn't tell us anything about you!" Hadoshi yelled.

"Fine. My name is Hatake Kimiko. I have already met my goals and I don't have anything interesting to achieve. Well, ja ne!" She waved as she disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"She didn't tell us anything but her name!" Nagi complained.

"Like we needed her to tell us who she was." Hachi agreed. Everyone in Konoha knew she was the only child of copycat ninja Hatake Kakashi and Mitarashi Anko. To add to that, his father was known as Konoha's White Fang while Anko had personally trained under one of the legendary Sannin- Orochimaru.

On a side note, they didn't really care about her lineage. They just saw her from time to time when their parents met up with her father, being he was their genin sensei.

Hadoshi felt the need to suddenly feed his stomach. "Have you guys eaten?" He asked.

"Yeah. Why?" Nagi asked.

"I was wondering because I was about to head over to Ichiraku."

"Well let's go then." She suggested as they began to walk.

"But…why are you two coming along if you already ate?" Hadoshi wondered.

Hachi scoffed. "We can all meet Kimiko-sensei at the same time. I know it won't take you long to eat so we can come up with a plan."

"A…plan? For what?" Hadoshi asked.

"Are you really clueless? If sensei wants us to meet her at the training grounds, then she must want to test our abilities. Why else would she tell us to bring our supplies? Besides, it won't take us long to get our weapons since we live within walking distance of Ichiraku." She explained. _It's funny how he stays so close to us, yet we hardly ever see him._ Nagi thought to herself. They walked in silence the rest of the way to the ramen shop.

Kimiko was standing on a tree branch monitoring the training grounds. She crossed her arms and leaned against the trunk, completely lost in her thoughts.

"Figure out what you're gonna do yet?"

Kimiko tilted her head slightly to the person who was talking to her. "Not yet." Her eyes went back to the training grounds. The branch she was standing on shifted slightly as the ANBU appeared in front of her. "You're in uniform? Where are you headed? Wait- take your mask off then tell me where you're going." She stated.

The mask was taken off and Korisa's face appeared. "I have to take off right after I tell you. The Kazekage of Suna sent a message that shinobi from his village are disappearing while traveling to Konoha. Likewise, some ninja from here also disappear, but nothing is being made public as of yet. We ANBU are to break into four groups of five with the ANBU from Suna to investigate. Hokage-sama instructed us to brief you all regardless if you pass the students or not. If you do, the chances of you getting away missions are likely so be careful until this is resolved."

"I will." She sounded a bit distracted by what Korisa had just told her.

"Reminiscing?" She asked slightly amused at Kimiko.

"If I didn't have these kids, I would be on your team still. Oh, who is on your team anyway?"

"Myself, Sakemo-niisan, June, and Zak. Kaa-san (mother) is the captain."

"Your mother is an advanced medic-nin, so why bring June?" Kimiko asked with curiosity in her voice.

"Extra precautions. We don't know what to expect." Korisa replied.

An amused expression fell over Kimiko. "I'll bet Zak is gonna take Kendo with him right?"

"Of course he is! What's an Inuzuka without his dog?" Korisa said referring to Zak and his white terrier pit.

"I'm not gonna hold you up. Thanks for the heads-up."

"No problem. Try not to kill the kids. You're still one of the strongest ANBU members we've got." With a giggle she disappeared in a poof of smoke.

Kimiko looked into the clearing and watched her 'team' walk toward her. A slick smile crossed her face. "I'll **try** not to kill them Korisa." She said to herself.

*Pant *Pant *Pant*Pant *Pant *Pant

Three sets of lungs labored as they waited for their opponent to make his next move.

_They are pretty good._ Misoa thought to himself. He was up in a nearby tree watching the rookies below him, forming a triangle formation so they could watch each other's back. He looked over his shoulder to see an ANBU personnel hovering above him. Beside the ANBU was a white terrier pit dog.

"I'm kind of in the middle of something right now." Misoa said in a hushed tone.

"I know but Hokage-sama dispatched us ANBU to give you 'sensei's' the updates concerning what's going on outside the village walls." He said in a young, but gruff voice as he leapt beside Misoa.

_**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu [Shadow Clone Jutsu]**__._ Misoa thought as he activated the justu. He made his clone go and distract the students until he was ready for them. "What's up Zak?" Misoa asked eagerly.

"What gave me away?" He asked in good humor as he removed his mask. He knew it wasn't his scent, because he masked it and Kendo's to keep Kouga from smelling them- being from the same clan and all.

"The dog." Misoa smiled at him.

"Figures. Alright here's what's up…" Zak then replayed to Misoa the same words Korisa had said to Kimiko just seconds prior. Misoa was silent as he digested what Zak said. "You alright?" Zak asked after a few moments of irritating silence.

"Not really." He then looked down at the Fire Temple cloth on his thigh. "I should be helping you guys right now!" Misoa grunted as he dug his nails into the tree bark.

"Shoulda, coulda, woulda are three different things. Right now what you're doing is important. If you pass them they'll have to be ready for what's ahead of them. What's the purpose of passing them if you can't teach them to stay alive on away missions?"

"Who said I was passing them?" Misoa asked.

"No one…just saying in general." Zak stated as he placed his mask back on his face. "Let's go Kendo." The dog nodded his head and leap over to his master.

"You Inuzuka's have a lot in common. But you're a bit…off." Misoa said to the 16-year-old ANBU member.

"Yeah. Uncle Kiba said I get it from my mother. Mom said too bad it didn't rub off on him since she's his older sister." Zak chuckled from behind his mask.

"I just hope it rubs off on his son, because right now, Kouga is a spitting image of Kiba."

*Humph* "Don't hold your breath, you'll pass out." Zak raised his right hand to his midsection to form the designated seal and disappeared with Kendo.

_I won't._ Misoa thought as his attention once again went back to his students and his clone.

"Is that so?" Konohamaru asked.

Sakemo nodded his head while his ANBU mask hung by his hip. "Hokage-sama's orders."

"How long will you guys be gone?"

"Hard to say. Depends on what we come up with. Anything else you wanna know? I gotta fly." Sakemo asked as he replaced his mask.

"Nothing right now anyway. You and your team; be careful." Konohamaru cautioned.

"Sure thing." Forming the sign of the sheep, Sakemo disappeared.

"What's going on Konohamaru-sensei? Are you coming with us?" Chouza asked when he noticed Konohamaru was more than 100 ft behind them. Surprisingly enough, they had passed his test with flying colors. They had begun their decent back to the village when Konohamaru noticed Sakemo following them. Konohamaru purposely slowed down to speak with Sakemo without his students noticing. Concealing his chakra, Sakemo appeared beside Konohamaru and quickly hold him what the Hokage had said.

For a split second, Inoiki thought he felt someone's presence, but when they turned around, Konohamaru was the only one there. Shikaru _knew_ she felt another presence and was irritated when she too only saw their sensei.

Jogging, he caught up with his students. "You changing your mind about passing us?" Shikaru asked after she noticed he had a concentrating expression on his face.

"Actually I was wondering if I should treat you all out to eat for passing or should I just let you pay for your own meals? What say you all?" He said with a smile on his face.

"Really? You rock Sensei!" Chouza shouted. Like every Akimichi, he had a soft spot for food.

_Figures you'd get excited over food._ Inoiki thought with a smile. "I'm in if you're paying Sensei."

Shikaru knew that wasn't the only thing he wanted to say, but she decided to humor him anyway." Doesn't matter with me." Shikaru said as she put her arms behind her head, making her elbows stick out. "You guys wanna train more after?" She asked her teammates.

"Sure!" Chouza chipped up.

"If they don't need help in the shop, I'm in." Inoiki stated referring to the Yamanaka family's flower shop.

Konohamaru was a bit shocked to hear them talk about training. When he was younger, Team 10 was infamous for not caring to train. Yet, here another generation later and all are changed. _Maybe they're not so much like the loudmouth, lazy, and glutton before them._

"Hey Sensei? Are you gonna supervise our training?" Chouza asked with innocence in his voice.

"I'll take a rain check this time. I have to report to the Hokage as soon as we are done eating. Besides, we have plenty of time to train together."

The three nodded their head as the new Team 10 entered the village gates.

"This is bogus!" Hadoshi struggled from behind his binds. Like his father, he was tied to the log after not being able to retrieve one of the two bells. Fortunately for him, Nagi was tied to his left and Hachi to his right- all on the same log!

Kimiko had an annoyed look on her face. She looked from Nagi, to Hadoshi, then at Hachi. Sharigan/ fire jutsu mix; Juken/ kage bunshin combination; and Sharingan/ taijutsu blend…and they still can't touch me! She thought to herself in frustration. At this rate I'll have no choice but to fail them. They'd better come up with something quick!

"Are you ready to listen?" She asked as she sat Indian style in front of them.

"You said whoever didn't get a bell would be tied to the log! So why are all three of us tied up!" Nagi yelled.

"You know you just answered that question with your first statement?" Kimiko asked. Not waiting for a smart remark, she answered instead. "None of you got a bell so you all were tied up. I never said I was going to just tie up **only one**. You all assumed one since you only saw two bells."

Hachi growled as he craned his head to try and face Kimiko over his right shoulder. "Like it'd matter! One of us would have ended up tied up because there are only _two_ bells to begin with!"

15 or so minutes ago

"You want us to what?" Hadoshi asked with his eyes wide. Nagi stood to his left and Hachi was on her left. They too had slight looks of disbelief on their faces; not to confuse it with fear.

"You heard me. Come at me with the intention of killing me if you plan on getting these bells from me. Whoever doesn't get a bell will be tied to the log over there and fail. Any more questions before we begin?" Kimiko asked the genin as she tied the bells to her waist.

"You got a time limit?" Hachi asked.

"Until you get the bells or whenever I feel like stopping."

"We can use any weapon we have at our disposal?" Nagi asked with a grin.

"Yup. Why else would I tell you to bring them?" Kimiko asked with her arms now folded in front of her. "Anything else?" No one spoke up. "Alright then, let's begin." Then she disappeared in a poof of smoke.

All three of them were still in the same spots, but took on fighting stances. _Where is she?_ Nagi thought as she tried to pinpoint their sensei's chakra. They all stayed that way and waited.

_I guess they want me to make the first move._ Kimiko thought as she watched in annoyance at the genin that were still at statues. _Oh well, don't want to disappoint them._ She thought with a sneaky smile.

_What the…_ The three genin thought as kunai shot through the air. Lucky for them, their bodies reacted quicker than their mind did. They jumped away from the kunai far enough for Hadoshi to accidentally step on a trip wire. Once again, numerous kunai shot from a direction that caused them to avoid getting hit.

By now, they were a good 20ft from each other but the kunai from the trap almost did them in. The fabric on Hachi's right thigh was ripped, Nagi's left arm was almost grazed, and Hadoshi's torso looked like a tiger had dug his claws across his chest.

_Perfect position!_ Kimiko thought as she looked at their placement. They were gaped apart, but they still slightly managed to form a small triangle formation._ Well at least they're not standing beside each other._ "Glad I got your attention." Kimiko appeared, standing on a tree branch facing her students. "Now then, first ninja art…" She then appeared on the ground between them and began a fighting stance. "Taijutsu!"

At a high speed, she sped to her first target: Hadoshi. She threw a few practice punches that he easily blocked. Hadoshi quickly got tired of being on the defense and began to strike back. Kimiko was impressed by how fast he threw his punches, but they weren't fast enough. As his juken was thrusting forward, Kimiko grabbed him by the wrist with her left hand and pulled him forward.

_Great! She's gonna flip me like Kenshin did yesterday!_ Hadoshi yelled in his head; but he never flipped over-worse. As his body was going forward, Kimiko released his wrist and brought her knee up to drive it into his stomach. Just as quick, she bolded her right fist and backhanded him across his face, sending him sliding on his shoulder. As he slid, he managed to turn on all fours and stopped himself by digging his nails into the ground. _Freakin' déjà vu! Man she's worse than Kenshin._ He thought as he held his stomach in his hand.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nagi racing forward with a kunai in her hand. Going through a few seals, she activated a jutsu before Nagi reached her. As Nagi got closer to Kimiko, the ground below them shook violently. She jumped back in time as an anaconda erupted from the ground. Before she could think, it was wrapped around her, squeezing the life out of her. She dropped her kunai as she felt it about to crush her bones. _But…how? How did she do a summoning justu without…_ Nagi blinked and saw Kimiko as she rammed her fist into her stomach. Nagi instantly dropped to her knees and tried to find air to fill her lungs. _That snake was a…_Nagi was thinking before Kimiko's voice cut her off.

"Second ninja art…Genjutsu!" Kimiko yelled over her shoulder to Nagi as she began her fight with Hachi. Both were fighting with kunai in hand. As they were trying to overpower each other with kunai to each other's throat, she saw he had his Sharingan activated. _Took him long enough._ She smiled smugly at him. She purposely withdrew her weight and leap backwards. Going quickly through the seals, she performed a jutsu: _Tiger, Ox, Sheep, Horse, Dragon, Tiger._ _He may be able to see what move this is…but let's see if he can stop it._

"**Earth Style! Rising Earth Jutsu!"** She yelled from the spot she was in, still having her hands a seal.

Earth began to rise from the ground into pillars. From those pillars, earth poked out like spikes that caused Hachi to be careful how he ran toward his target. Before he got to her a pillar of earth popped out from under his feet. It carried him a few feet in the air before he saw Kimiko jumping over the pillars making her way toward him. Unable to move, he brought his arms in front of him to counter any move she may throw at him.

She was at least 5ft in front of him when she suddenly appeared behind him. _Shunshin no Jutsu!__ [Flicker Technique!]_ Hachi's mind rang out as he thought about turning to counter, but it was too late. The flicker was no more than a distraction as she reappeared in front of him and kicked him squares in the stomach. He slid on his butt by his sister and held his stomach when he finally stopped.

"Third ninja art…Ninjutsu." Her voice rang to the teenagers as she squatted over the pillar she kicked Hachi off. She saw Hachi had deactivated his Sharingan so she performed the seals to release the ninjutsu. The pillars of earth went back into the ground and the landscape looked as if nothing had happened. "So…you guys want me to give you a second chance, or should I just fail you now?" She asked in an icy voice.

She was met with three sets of angry eyes. _Great!_ "Your skills are pretty much average, but I don't see how they can help you outside these village walls, so what's the point in passing…how should I say this…losers." If they didn't have a killing intent, it was evident now. _This isn't great- this is just perfect._ Kimiko smiled in her head as her face still had a cold expression.

"Screw this!" Nagi shouted as she activated her Sharingan. Hachi, now semi-recovered from his fall, reactivated his Sharingan.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"**__Hadoshi yelled. Four clones appeared and rushed toward Kimiko. She looked and saw Hachi and Nagi whispering among each other. _This is so typical._ She thought as she prepared to fight the juken clad Hadoshi clones. She quickly disposed of the clones and created a clone herself. _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu._ She said in her mind. She allowed it to fight with the real Hadoshi as the Uchiha twins were closing in on her.

_This clone is just as tough as the real one!_ Hadoshi thought as he found it hard to overpower the clone.

Kimiko allowed her focus to fully attend to the Uchihas in front of her. First, Hachi attacked with a high kick, which she blocked. Next, he threw a fist which she caught with her other hand. _He thinks he has me because both my hands are occupied._ She smiled in her head as she saw him reach for the bells. She pushed off her weight and flew backwards.

_Alright Nagi, you're up._ Hachi thought with a sneaky smile on his face.

_What's with the face?_ She thought as she was still sliding. She looked out of the corner of her eyes to see Nagi going through a series of seals.

_Snake, Tiger, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger. __**Fire Style! Blazing Fireball Jutsu!**_ Nagi took a deep breath of air before putting her right hand to her mouth to aim where she was firing.

_Holy Shit!_ Kimiko thought before the flames of the attack consumed her.

"Alright we got her!" Hachi hi-fived his sister when he got beside her. They both looked on as the fire continued to burn. Hadoshi on the other hand, was pinned to a tree by his right sleeve being securely held by four kunai (two on top & two on bottom). He managed to see the end of their fight when Kimiko-sensei got barbecued.

_If they got her, then why isn't this stupid clone disappearing?_ He thought, as he got more frustrated. Just as he managed to dig one of the kunai out, the clone began to run toward him. He threw it which the clone deflected with one of its' own. With his adrenaline, he snatched the remaining kunai and aimed them at her. It didn't go as smoothly as he had wanted for clone deflected those as well.

Again they started their sparring match again and by this time Hadoshi was running low on chakra. _Why don't you disappear already?_ Hadoshi yelled in his mind. Immediately, his eyes went over to the fire that was still burning. Looking closer into the fire, he let out a gasp. _No way! Nagi and Hachi haven't even noticed it yet! But then…this clone is…_He was unable to finish his thought as his feet were swept from under him. He fell backwards and bumped the back of his head.

The Kimiko clone stepped on his chest and smiled down at him. "So you noticed? What are you gonna do about it?" She asked as she put more weight on her victim. He let out a small groan but bit his lip. _Too long to answer!_ With that, she kicked him back toward the tree she had pinned him on, and then disappeared.

Hachi looked out of the corner of his eye in time to see the clone disappear. "The fire is dying." Nagi said as they both waited to see what was left of their sensei. "What the hell!" Nagi screamed. Where a body should have been was a piece of wood.

"Standard **replacement jutsu!**" Kimiko's voice rang out of nowhere. "I'm where you least expect me!" Her voice rang again as if she knew they were thinking 'where is she?' Before they could react, a hand reached out of the ground to grab Nagi's left ankle while another grabbed Hachi's right ankle. They were instantly pulled down until only their heads were visible.

"**Earth Style. Headhunter jutsu.**" Kimiko said coolly to them as she walked toward them. They could only wiggle in the ground without much success.

Hadoshi had his mouth hanging down as he saw the turn of events that just conspired. His thoughts were to attack Kimiko while she was distracted, but something glittering in the sun caught his attention._ A BELL!_ He sang in his head. He was about to make a move for it before his common sense jumped in. _It may be a trap._ He thought suspiciously as he made a clone appear. He instructed it to make an attempt to get the bell, only to be caught in a rope around its' ankle. _I knew it!_ He smiled victorious as he went the opposite direction around the tree.

_I feel bad for the Uchihas, but I'm not going to fail! I bet I'm the only one who passed this stupid test and…_ "Ahhhh!" Hadoshi yelled as he was trapped in a net lined with chakra.

Kimiko let out a sigh/groan then looked to the sky. "And then there were none."

Present

Kimiko was still sitting in Indian style as the genin tried break the rope she tied around them. "That's no use. You can't get out until _I_ untie you…or someone comes along one day and finds your bodies that is." Each one stopped moving and looked at her with hatred in their eyes.

She took out a kunai and stuck her right index finger through the hole at the end. As she spoke to them, she twirled the kunai around the finger. "You all have strengths, I give you that. But you allow your weaknesses to overpower your strengths…"

"What are you talking about? Stop talking in riddles and tell us what you're trying to tell us!" Nagi yelled.

Kimiko didn't like being cut off when she was trying to explain something. Seeing as they were genin, she calmed herself down the only way she could think. _One…two…three…four…_

Hadoshi too was getting fed up with the long explanation. He didn't care about what she had to tell them, he just wanted to know their fates. "What's with the silent treatment? Are you gonna tell us if we pass or failed?"

Five…six…seven…

"Hey! You still haven't told us the point of having two bells instead of three! Did you plan on failing us all from the beginning?" Hachi too was aggravated.

Eight…nine…ten…elev…FUCK IT!!

Quicker than their eyes could follow, Kimiko pulled out three shurikens and threw each one a couple of inches from its' victims' neck.

"I'll answer each of your questions in my explanation. But for future references, don't interrupt me when I'm trying to tell you something that could save your lives because I may be the one to end it one day!" She hissed at them with her icy violet eyes. Her killing intent alone was enough to make all three shut up.

Kimiko was now officially pissed. She twirled the kunai a bit more vigorously now and her voice was now harsh and held no emotion whatsoever. "Like I was saying, you've all got both good and bad points but your bad outweigh your good now."

"Nagi and Hachi! You both work on teams and leave Hadoshi out of your plans! Had you included him, I would have been dead right now! And you Hadoshi are too proud to even ask them for assistance. In fact, you knew that wasn't really me in the fire, but you didn't warn the others about it! This is not how a team is suppose to work!"

"There was a reason for me having two bells: it was to get you all to act like a team. But I see now that there are two people on a team and one person acting individually. Well, that's Nagi and Hachi's questions answered in a nutshell. Now for Hadoshi's: Do I pass you or fail you?" Kimiko closed her eyes and twirled the kunai as she thought about their fate. She twirled the kunai so fast that it could have created its' own tornado.

Still having her eyes closed, she threw the kunai at the rope containing the genin. With accurate aim, she hit the knot in the rope and it immediately fell, causing them to drop to the ground. "Today is your lucky day. I'll give you a third chance but you all must somehow utilize the three main ninja arts to defeat me. Alright then, let's go..." Instead of Kimiko disappearing this time, they all went into a hiding position. _Glad I got through to them. Brats didn't even wait for me to say 'begin'._ Kimiko smiled as she waited for their attacks while still sitting on the ground.

[Hokage Tower]

Naruto sat at his desk and read over the paperwork of those who failed their genin. He sighed at the potential ninja, but rationed that teamwork is very important. Konohamaru watched him with little emotion. Since he had passed his team, he reported to Naruto and gave him a full statement of how the team did and what they needed to work on. To his left, Misoa stood with a bored expression. He too had passed his team and had given his report to Naruto also. They were about to leave when…

*Knock* *Knock *Knock*

"Come in Kimiko." Naruto stated which caused the two Sarutobi's to look at him in surprise.

"How'd you know it was me?"

"Your father **was** and **still is** infamous for being late. Even though you didn't plan on entering late, it's innate that you did." He smiled as he put down his papers to look at her. "You look like hell." He noted her ruffled uniform, mangled hair, and black scorch marks on her cheeks. She was also favoring her left shoulder with her right hand. "What's the verdict?"

"Long story short: they pass but need a more work on a three-man team."

"That's normal. All nine of the genin know of each other but don't really know each other in depth. Every individual has his or her own unique way of fighting and preference. This is just going to take some time. I had to learn the hard way about teamwork. Unfortunately for them, they're gonna have to learn to work with each other quickly. You've all received the reports from the ANBU I sent out correct?"

"Hai." They each answered.

"I'm glad. We don't know what we're going to find but hopefully it will lead us to some clues as to what's going on. I'm pretty sure the teams are gonna be pissed but I have a long list of D-rank missions lined up starting tomorrow. The more missions they take, the tougher the missions will be. That is what brings us to the matter at hand. Any D or even C rank missions may require teams going outside the safety of the village walls."

Naruto leaned forward and rubbed his temple the way Tsunade use to when she felt a headache coming on. "I don't want to keep this from them because they are starting shinobi, but I don't wish to alarm them so it throws their mind off. Lucky we don't have to worry about that now so we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Anything else you wish to report or comment on?"

All three shook their head. "Then you're dismissed for today. I'll see you tomorrow morning for your missions. Tomorrow starts the day for Team Kimiko, Team Misoa, and Team Konohamaru!" Each bowed to the Hokage and left. Once again, Izumo and Kotesu came in with paperwork. Naruto put his head on his desk and cursed the person who invented paperwork.


	4. Chapter 4

"Thank you! Come again!" Ayame smiled to the departing teenagers.

"You're welcome! We will!" Chouza spoke up as he waved at the owners' daughter. "So where do you guys want to train?"

"Hold on a few minutes. I have to stop by the flower shop to see if they need any more help." Inoiki stated.

"Why doesn't your family just hire some people to sell the flowers instead?" Shikaru asked.

"Because it's a **family** business. It would defeat the purpose if we let others come in and run it for us."

"Whatever." Shikaru said as she looked to the sky. _What the heck does dad see in watches the clouds?_ Shikaru thought as a second team came forward. "I assume you guys passed. What took you so long to get here?" She asked as she looked at the members of Team 8.

"Misoa-sensei wanted us to have one of those heart-to-hearts. It took forever! And that was after he passed us!" Kouga complained. "Woof! Woof!" Michi barked beside him meaning she agreed with him.

"Hey there Michi!" Chouza greeted the collie as he knelt down on one knee. She raced up to him and allowed him to pet her. He reached into his side pocket and retrieved a treat for her to eat.

"You're spoiling her like that you know." Kouga stated with his arms crossed.

"Jealous? Would you like a treat too?" Chouza teased. Kouga just rolled his eyes and smirked. _I don't like that kind anyway._ Kouga thought.

"So where are you guys headed?" Shikaru asked the group; mainly Kenshin.

"Nowhere in particular." He stated.

"I'm heading home now." Shiobi stated as she turned to leave. Kenshin looked as if he wanted to say something to her, but kept his mouth shut. Shikaru raised an eye at his demeanor but also kept her mouth closed. Shiobi had almost gotten 20ft away when she stopped to stare at the sight before her.

Team 7 made their way to the ramen shop holding onto each other. Rather, Hadoshi was being helped with Hachi under his left arm and Nagi under his right. Hadoshi stopped walking when he reached Shiobi. "Hiya Shiboi!" He yelled.

_He looks all beaten up yet he still has the energy to yell?_ Shikaru thought irritated at Hadoshi's sudden outburst.

Shiobi slightly bowed to him. "Hello Hadoshi-kun." She then eyed his team members from behind her shades. She slightly bowed to them also as she greeted them. "Nagi. Hachi." They each returned the greeting with a small bow. "Pass?" She asked them.

"You bet! You?" Hadoshi asked her back.

"Hai."

"That's great!" He put more energy into his yell that made his weight shift slightly; much to the discomfort to Nagi and Hachi. A small smile almost appeared out of the corner of her mouth as she attempted to leave again. "Are you leaving so soon?" Hadoshi asked in an almost disappointed tone.

Shiobi curiously raised an eyebrow at him behind her stringy hair. "I am."

"Stay for a bit. I want to hear about how you guys passed." Shiobi thought about his proposition for a moment. She really wanted to go home and be alone for a while…but then it was hard to ignore the son of Konoha's number one hyperactive, knuckleheaded ninja. So she shrugged her shoulders and walked back to the group with them.

"So you changed your mind?" Kouga said from his crouched spot on the ground to Shiobi.

"…" Was the only response he got from his teammate. _Antisocial bug freak._ Kouga thought annoyed as he pet Michi.

"You guys passed too? That's great!" Hadoshi yelled again when he saw Team 10.

"Stop moving so much Hadoshi!" Nagi ordered him. She felt eyes on her so she brought her head up to meet with Inoiki's. Although it was brief, they quickly turned their heads away from each other. Everyone noticed the little exchange-except Hadoshi that is.

"Oh I'm alright. All I need is something to eat from Ichiraku and I'm good to go!" Hadoshi reassured his team members.

"Yeah right!" Hachi growled from Hadoshi changing his weight.

"Let's just take him if it will shut him up!" Nagi urged her brother.

"I'll take him." Kenshin stated as he stepped forward to help his cousin.

"We got him. Besides, we're going to eat too." Hachi eyed Kenshin.

"Then I'll join you." Kenshin stated with his arms crossed as he eyed Hachi also. They didn't hate each other or anything like that; they just **REALLY** can't stand each other! Hachi thinks Kenshin is arrogant and Kenshin thinks Hachi is self-centered.

_They both are the top genin in our class and they can't see eye to eye on something like lunch?_ Shikaru thought about the guys.

"Let's just go!" Kouga stated with Michi barking beside him. "I don't see a reason why Michi and I can't grab a bowl too."

"Will they even give that dog a bowl?" Shikaru asked.

"I don't see why they wouldn't if I'm paying for it." Defending his ninja dog.

"Say? Why don't you guys come with us?" Hadoshi asked Team 10.

"I'm in!" Chouza piped in.

"We just ate." Shikaru said dryly.

"Well…" Chouza scratched the back of his head and smiled.

_Clan Akimichi and food._ Inoiki thought about his friend. "You guys go on ahead, I'm going to the shop and then meet you at Ichiraku. If I can't come, I'll send a message."

"Fine just hurry up." Shikaru said dryly. Inoiki and Nagi made brief eye contact one final time before he sped toward the Yamanaka flower shop.

­­­

[Ichiraku]

"Well hello again!" Ayame greeted Hadoshi, Nagi, Hachi, Chouza, and Shikaru.

"And hello to you four today!" She also greeted Team 8 with Michi. Everyone took a seat and waited for her to begin taking their orders. Over the years, the simple ramen shop had really expanded. It wasn't anything like a huge restaurant, but it provided room for at least 10-15 people unlike 5 in the past.

The seating arrangements were Nagi, Hachi, Hadoshi, Kenshin, Kouga, Michi by his feet, Shiobi, Couza, and Shikaru. Everyone took their seat and was ready to order. Shikaru and Shiobi weren't hungry so they said if any extra customers needed a seat, they would move. The voice of an older man rung from the back of the shop, "Ayame? Could you give me a hand back here please?"

"Sure thing dad. I'll be right back everyone." She then went in the back to help her father.

"Oh but I'm hungry now." Hadoshi whined.

"Me too." Chouza agreed.

"You two complain too much! She said she would be right back for crying out loud!" Kouga nearly shouted.

"You're loud as ever Kouga." A teenage boy of 13 complimented.

"Oh! What's up Tai?" Kouga high-fived the teen that stood behind him.

"Nothing much. We just got back from a mission and stopped by here to grab a bite to eat."

"We?" Kouga asked.

"He's talking about me." A 14-year-old boy suddenly appeared behind the counter.

Hadoshi nearly fell from his stool. "Gwak! Don't startle us like that Hoji!" He patted his heart for emphasis.

"Come on! I'm just fooling with you guys. I saw mom step to the back to help grandpa so I decided so sacrifice my hunger to please yours." He then walked to the sink to wash his hands. After he was done, he tied a white apron on and put on a hat. "So what can I get for you all today?"

"The house special please!" Hadoshi and Chouza said together.

"Same thing." Nagi and Hachi said in unison.

"I'll have a diet ramen please." Kenshin requested.

"One miso soup for me and a bowl for Michi too. But don't put any eggs in her ramen though; it gives her gas." Kouga patted Michi on the top of her head.

"Water." Shikaru said.

"Green tea please?" Shiobi asked.

"What about you Tai? What will you eat?" Hoji asked Tai as he sat beside Shikaru.

"What the heck. I'll have a diet ramen with the egg that was going in Michi's ramen."

"Sorry for the wait. Are you all ready to…Tamahoji? When did you get back son?" Ayame kissed her son on his leaf headband. He blushed when she used his whole name.

"A second ago. I saw grandpa call you in the back so I took their order for you." He handed her the pad with the orders on them.

"Thank you. Why don't you stay here and wait for more customers while I help your grandfather cook these orders?" She asked her son.

"Sure thing mom." She slightly pinched his cheek before returning to cook the orders.

"Hey! Hey! Where was your mission?" Hadoshi asked the two older boys eagerly.

"Sorry no-can-tell kid." Hoji said as he gave Shikaru and Shiobi their drinks.

"Why not!"

"Confidential." Tai smiled to him.

"Bull! What could be so bad that you guys can't tell us?" Kouga asked with curiosity in his voice.

"It's because we're genin." Kenshin said coolly.

"What's that got to do with anything? Tamahoji-kun is a genin like us. If anything Tai should be the one to tell us since he's already a chunnin." Nagi spoke up.

"It's not that simple Nagi." Shikaru said before taking a drag of her water.

"Why?"

Shikaru took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She really didn't want to go into a long-winded discussion about rank and discussing particular missions._ This is going to be a pain to explain._

"Genin are **normally **only allowed missions on a three-man team; four counting the sensei. Out of their team, Tai was the only one to make it to chunnin. So long as he is competent, he is allowed to take genin on missions up to B rank. Hoji is one of those exceptions. If the mission he takes is above genin level, he is not allowed to say anything about it until Hokage-sama gives the okay." She then took another drag of her water.

"Then why don't you try to make it to chunnin already if you're so good Tamahoji-kun?" Nagi asked.

"Maybe I'm waiting for you so we can pass together." He said sweetly to Nagi.

She blushed slightly as Hachi glared at Hoji. "Don't be so serious Hachi-kun. Geez! You really need to lighten up." He smiled as he went to help Ayame serve the ramen.

"Thank you for the food!" They all yelled in unity after eating.

"Boy Ichiraku is the best!" Chouza complimented the ramen shop.

Hoji put his left hand in front of his torso and bowed. "Well thank you very much Chouza-kun. We do the best for our customers." He then looked over at Shikaru and winked at her. "Especially the ladies."

Shikaru rolled her eyes and inwardly flipped him off. "Whatever."

Hoji saw Nagi had her head turned and eyes closed. "Jealous?" He leaned over the counter and stared at her.

"For what!"

"Ooh easy. I just wanted to know when you were going to let me take you out on our first date?"

"How about never!" Hachi growled at him.

"I was asking the lady." Hoji said sweetly while staring at Nagi.

"You're not my type." She said while meeting his eyes.

It seemed his mood had dropped slightly as his eyes quickly darted in the clearing then back at Nagi. "So you would rather have a flower boy than the son of a chef?"

Once again she turned her head and closed her eyes. "I never said that!" She defended herself. It was hard for her to tell if he was being serious or joking.

"You never denied it either." He said with a wide grin. Ayame whacked her son behind his head with a thick wooden spoon. "Ow! Mom that hurt!" He rubbed his sore head.

"It was meant to! Stop teasing her because it's making her uncomfortable! On top of that, flirting is bad for business!"

"My bad, my bad." He smiled sheepishly at his mom. She just shook her head and began to take another customer's order.

"Truce?" Hoji extended his left hand to Nagi. She took his hand expecting a common handshake; instead he kissed the top of her hand. Hachi was furious! He leaned forward to punch Hoji in the face only to have Hoji catch it in his right hand. "You really need to cool off." He smiled as he released Hachi's hand.

"This is interesting." Inoiki laughed at the scene before him.

"You been there long?" Chouza asked.

"Hmm…just long enough to see Hoji-kun get whacked with a ladle!"

"Well it took you long enough!" Shikaru said in aggravation. She then saw he had a basket of flowers handing from his arm. "So are you going to train with us or what?" She asked.

"Sorry but I've gotta run the shop until everyone gets back." He said as he sat the basket on the counter.

"I have your order Ayame-san."

"Thank you very much. Be sure to tell your mom 'thank you' for making them on such short notice." She said as she gave him the money for the flowers and took the basket.

"No problem." He saluted her as she took the flowers to the back.

"So everyone in your entire family is gone on a mission?" Shikaru asked him in disbelief.

"Yeah. Grandpa Inoichi isn't back from his mission and dad got a call early this morning. When I went to the shop, mom told me she had a mission and for us to stay with Chouza."

"Us?"

"Oh yeah! Yours and Chouza's dad came by the shop to pick my mom up. Your mom left for Suna a while ago and Chouza's mom is still on a leave of absence from missions so we are to stay with her."

_Something isn't right. It's too early for mom to go back to Suna! Why would she leave without letting me know!_ Shikaru thought with anger in her mind.

"The academy students who left with Tsunade-sama are back. If you have a child you live with, go now and pick them up because your parents are leaving for missions now." Shiobi spoke for the first time since her conversation with Hadoshi.

"How do you know that?" Hadoshi asked with awe in his eyes.

Shiobi pointed her finger at Inoiki for everyone to see the small bug on her finger. "This is one of my father's bugs. It came over in the flowers to relay the message your parents told my father."

"What's the mission?" Kouga asked

"It didn't say."

There was an uncomfortable silence as Hoji and Tai made eye contact then nodded at each other. "I'll see you in a little bit." Hoji said to Tai in a semi-serious tone.

"Alright." Tai stood up to leave.

"Are you going so soon Tai-kun?" Ayame asked.

"Yeah I have to head over to the academy. Its' been two years since their adoption but they're still my little brother and sister." Tai said referring to his 10-year-old brother and 7-year-old sister.

Unintentionally, Kenshin and Shiobi stood at the same time and then looked at each other. "You heading home now?" He asked her.

"Yeah. You?"

"I'm going to the academy."

"Why?" Hachi asked, still upset with Hoji for flirting with his sister earlier.

"Is it any of your concern?" Kenshin asked not bothering to look at him. "Just worry about picking up your little brother." Hachi was ready to launch at him but Nagi grabbed his shoulder.

"Chill out! You're going to get us banned from here!"

"You would just hate that wouldn't you Nagi?" Kouga teased.

"What is that suppose to mean dog-breath?" She rose out of her seat.

Not an Inuzuka to hold his tongue, he stood his ground. "I mean you wouldn't be able to see your 'Tamahoji-kun' if you got banned from here.

"Alright you guys! Chill out!" Tai ordered the genin. Both just glared at him but didn't say anything to the stronger chunnin._ This is bad. All of the elite ninja are being called for a mission. That doesn't leave many able shinobi except these kids! On top of that, the academy students aren't supposed to be back for another couple of days or so!_

Hadoshi and Shikaru just stared at Tai. He wasn't one to yell at people, no matter how annoying they were._ Something must really be bothering him to yell._ Hadoshi thought sadly. He quickly jumped from his seat and faced the group.

"I have to get my little sister Kiyoshi too! Why don't we all walk together?" He urged his peers.

"I'll pass." Shiobi announced as she began her walk toward her home.

"Bye Shiobi!" Hadoshi waved her goodbye.

"Hey! Don't forget to meet us tomorrow for our first mission!" Kouga yelled. Michi barked to agree.

She turned and bowed to everyone as she disappeared into the streets of Konoha.


	5. Chapter 5

Everyone stood in front of the academy and waited for the kids to come out.

"What's taking them so long!" Shikaru asked with her arms crossed. Chouza was sitting in front of the tree that had a swing in it. He had begun eating a bag of chocolate chip cookies when Shikaru stood beside him and expressed her thoughts openly.

"It's almost time for school to be let out. They'll be out in a little while." He then went back to eating his cookies.

"A little while was 15 minutes ago!" Kouga growled from up in the tree. He was tired of standing on the ground so he and Michi climbed into the tree and knelt down on a branch.

On a opposite branch, Tai was lying on his stomach, straddling a branch. Above him, Kenshin was sitting Indian style against the trunk with his eyes closed. He was obviously meditating from the concentration on his face.

Looking down, Hadoshi was sitting in the swing with his elbows on his knees and his hands in his face. He was absentmindedly-kicking dirt, clearly being bored.

Hachi was on his right sitting Indian style with his right hand on his chin. He too was clearly bored. Finally Nagi was sitting on the left side of the tree with her arms around her legs and her head touching her knees. She seemed to be lost in her thoughts. _Probably trying to decide between Tamahoji and Inoiki._ Tai thought with a small smile on his face.

"Good job everyone! I'll see you tomorrow!" Iruka said loudly.

"About time!" Kouga shouted as he, Michi, Tai, and Kenshin leapt out of the tree. About two dozen kids spilled out the front the door. Seven out of the group ran toward the genin and Tai.

"Tai-niisan [Big brother Tai]!" Two children ran toward him.

"Chen! Lily-chan! How was your trip?" He asked as he embraced the two.

"It was fun!" Lily bounced up and down with all the energy she could muster.

"Except when it started raining. We all had to hurry up and put our tents up before we got soaked." Chen grimly remembered.

"It's just a little water. It can't hurt you." He assured the kids.

"A bath is fine; rain is annoying." A little girl beside Kouga stated.

"Arf! Arf!" The yorkie in her arms barked.

"Serena why don't you put the little ankle-biter down? It's old enough to walk on its' own." Kouga asked his little sister.

"Fuuki is still young." The eight-year-old looked up to her brother with pleading eyes.

"But he's not a helpless puppy! Put him down and let him walk!" Kouga ordered. Reluctantly, she put him down and he ran toward Kouga. "The hell! Serena get him!" Too bad it was just to pee on his foot. Michi picked the smaller dog up by the back on his neck and took him over to his owner.

"Thank you Michi-chan!" She patted her on the head. Michi sniffed the air and walked over to where Nagi was still seated. Being an animal, she picked up something was wrong with the girl. She did the only thing she could think of. She raised on her back legs and touched her nose to Nagi's head.

Nagi lifted her head to get a good lick from Michi. Any other time she would have pushed the dog away and wiped the drool off, instead she patted the dog on her head. "Thank you for caring Michi-chan." Wagging her tail, she walked back over to her master.

"I thought you didn't like dogs." Hachi asked as he sat down on her right.

"I don't. But Michi is okay." She leaned back on the tree, still hugging her knees.

Hachi sighed with annoyance at her 'pre-teen' behavior. "Why don't you just choose one already?"

Nagi blinked for a moment to register what her brother had just asked. "It's not that simple."

"How?"

"Well…we just… Oh! How was your trip?" Nagi suddenly jumped up to face the 8-year-old who had just walked up to them. Hachi too stood up to acknowledge their younger brother.

"What's wrong?" Green orbs stared into the black orbs of Nagi and Hachi. The twins looked like Sasuke but Yuraji was a spitting image of Sakura. He even had her pink hair! His hair was cut close while their raven hair went past their shoulders. Hachi opted to keep it braided in one pony tail though.

"N-Nothing. Stop staring at me like that!" She told Yuraji.

"Whatever. You ready to go." He turned his back to them, hurt apparent in his eyes. Like Sakura, he also wore his emotions on his sleeves while they remained composed like their father. A pair of arms wrapped around his neck from behind him.

"Don't be so sensitive." Nagi told him as she clicked her tongue.

"It makes you act like a girl." Hachi said as he ruffled what was left of Yuraji's hair.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Nagi demanded as she rested her hands on Yuraji's shoulders.

"Nothing you need to worry about." He said before turning his back.

"Chauvinistic…" She began muttering curses under her breath. Yuraji just smiled at his siblings and followed beside them. He looked in front of the tree so see Chouza sharing his cookies with his sister Hotaru. She was sitting between his legs as she told him about their 'field trip'.

"That's great Hotaru-chan! You found an interesting plant you say?" He said as he passed the bag to Hotaru.

"Yeah! Tsunade-sama said it was used for food, medicine, and other mo…mini…minoti …"

"Municipal." He corrected the 6-year-old.

"Yeah that!" She said as she scarffed down another cookie. She then looked up at Shikaru who had an irritated look on her face. Her arms were still crossed as she drummed her left bicep with her right fingers. "What's wrong with Shikaru-oneesan?"

"Sora is taking his time." Chouza said as stuck his hand in the bag to retrieve another handful of cookies.

"Sora! Bring your lazy butt now!" Shikaru yelled at the 9-year-old boy lagging behind.

"Geez! You don't have to yell." He eyed his sister.

"Then hurry up then I won't have to yell!" She said louder.

Sora didn't feel like hearing what his sister had to say. Looking past her, he eyed the spot Nagi had just got up from. Before he would advance any farther, he was yanked back beside his sister by his collar. "What!"

"You know what! We're about to leave so don't get comfortable under the tree!" She released him as he tugged out of her grasp.

"Annoying onna [woman]…"

"What did you say twerp!" Shikaru jacked Sora up by his shirt.

"Nothing! Let so Shikaru!" Hard as he tried, he could not get out of Shikaru's grasp.

"Oh come on and let him go Shikaru." Chouza pleaded. "My mom will ask what happened to him, and I don't want to be the one to tell her that siblings were fighting."

_Like I care._ Shikaru thought in her mind. Reluctantly, she let go of the little boy. "Watch that 'onna' crap twerp".

Sora rolled his eyes at her before walking over to the tree. He sat down and made an attempt to take a nap, but Chouza and Hotaru were beside him eating their cookies rather loudly. "Chouza? Why would your mom ask what happened to me?" He asked as he thought about what the older boy had just said.

"Dad is on a mission and Mom went back to Suna, so we're going to stay with the Akimichi's." Shikaru explained as she walked toward them.

"Why? We normally go over to the Yamanaka's."

"Inoiki is staying too because his family are on missions." Chouza ate another cookie. He handed the bag to Sora and offered him some cookies. He took one cookie and nodded his head in thanks. His young mind went to his parents.

_Mom normally says 'bye' before she leaves. They didn't even say how long she was going to be gone!_ His mind raced. He ate the cookie slowly until it was gone. By the time he was finished with the one cookie, Shikaru was sitting Indian style in front of him, eating a freshly opened bag of cookies with the Akimichi's. "How long are they going to be gone?"

"Don't know." Shikaru said as she looked at her brother. He had his eyes cast up toward the sky, oblivious that she was staring at him. _Such a mama's boy._ "I'm sure they'll be back soon." She reassured him. He looked at her and nodded his head.

"I knew you could do it Onii-san!" A 10-year-old girl yelled, causing everyone to stare at the swing Hadoshi was seated on a moment ago.

"Thanks Kiyoshi-chan, but do you think you can let me up now?" He asked as pain coursed his body (note* he is still hurt from his pass-or-fail test with Kimiko-sensei).

When everyone went to his or her brothers/sisters, Kiyoshi ran to where Hadoshi was sitting on the swing. The first thing she saw was his headband. She was so happy for him, she ran to give him a hug of congratulations, but she knocked them backwards instead.

"Oh, sorry!" She yelled loudly again. Hands on both sides on her arms caught her attention.

"Let me help you up." Homaru offered.

"Thanks! Homaru-chan? Are you still mad that you couldn't come with us?" She asked innocently.

"A little bit. I still think I was well enough to go though." He crossed his arms. "And stop calling me 'Homaru-chan'! We're the same age!"

"But I'm four months older than you." She gloated. "Besides, It's your own fault really. You were the one running outside in the rain and caught a cold." Hadoshi laughed as he raised on his elbows as his little sister and cousin went back and forth.

"It's not like I was alone. I remember you had a small cold too!" Homaru countered.

"But it wasn't enough for me to stay home and miss…"

Hadoshi looked at Kiyoshi as her mauve eyes followed Homaru. _Kawaii! She's like a chibi version of Ka-san._ He thought to himself. She even had Hinata's purple hair but it was pulled into a side ponytail; causing the ends to tickle her left shoulder. For a moment, he was reminded that he was the only person in his family who couldn't activate his bloodlimit. That feeling was replaced when he saw her flash a smile that reminded him of their father.

"You need to watch that." Kenshin said as he offered a hand to Hadoshi.

"I know." He said he Kenshin pulled him to his feet.

"Kenshin-niisan!" Kiyoshi yelled as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Hello Kiyoshi. I see your trip was fine."

"Yeah. And I see you all made it to genin. I'm so happy for you all!" She yelled as she squeezed him harder.

"T...Thanks." He almost gasps for air.

"Kiyoshi let him go so we can go!" Homaru began tugging her off.

"Are you coming to our house to stay?" Hadoshi asked him.

"Iie [No]. Iruka-oji-san [Uncle Iruka] told me and Kiyoshi to go to the Hyuuga Mansion." He finished as he completed getting Kiyoshi off Kenshin.

"What's wrong Tai?" Chen asked as he saw his older brother with wrinkles on his thick eyebrows.

"Guess I'm just tired. I'll walk you guys home."

"You're not staying with us Oniisan?" Lily almost whinned.

"I just have to finish running some errands then I'll be home later. A shinobi's word!" He put his right hand over his heart. Seeing they believed them, he crouched so Lily could climb on his back. This way, she got a piggy back ride and he got extra weight to train with. Chen did a quick stretch to ready himself for the heavy run home behind the chunnin.

"Alright everyone. Ja!" Tai started his sprint, Lily smiling widely and Chen trotting not long behind him.

"Chouza? Are you sure Tai is the only 'real' son?"

"What do you mean? He's got a brother and sister?" He asked the male Nara.

Sora shrugged his shoulders. "It's just hard to believe Chen and Lily were adopted by Rock Lee-sensei. They could pass for triplets with Tai." Sora mused as they quickly began to disappear in the distance.

"That's for damn sure." Shikaru agreed with her brother.

A thunderclap was heard in the distance that got everyone's attention. "The rain will be here soon. I'm taking Serena home now. I'll see you guys later. Come on Serena." Kouga announced as he led his 'team' home.

"Later." The three Uchihas said in unison as they also headed home.

"Alright lazy: get moving." Shikaru ordered her brother so he would pick up his pace.

_Troublesome onna…_ He thought as she trailed closely behind. In front of him, Chouza was also giving his sister a piggy-back ride.

"I guess that leave us." Hadoshi said to his family.

"Let's head home." Kenshin said as they all made their way to the Hyuuga compound; all walking in a comfortable silence.­­

* * *

"Misson passed. Come by tomorrow for your next mission. Dismissed." Naruto announced to Team Konohamaru. The genin had a slightly annoyed look on their face but bowed anyway and left with their sensei.

"I wonder what that was about?" Iruka pondered as he saw the looks on their face. Naruto just smiled as he stamped the official mission papers.

"They don't like doing D-rank missions. With their skill level, they could do C or possibly even low-level B rank missions. But I would never allow them to take missions like that. They need more experience." Naruto paused before looking down at the paper Konohamaru had submitted. "Besides, who likes to pick up trash as a mission?" He laughed as Tsunade smiled with him.

"What kind of a mission was that?" Shikaru complained as they walked outside the tower.

"A D-rank mission. The type genin usually get assigned before they advance to a higher level." Inoiki said casually.

"Don't be such a smart-ass!" She yelled at him.

"Please calm down Shikaru. Try not to get mad at Inoiki because we had to pick up trash." Chouza pleaded with his female team member.

"But we stink. Even Hadoshi noticed how bad we smelt when we ran into his team earlier!" She emphasized by pulling her shirt out in front of her.

"So that's what I've been smelling for the past ten minutes." Kouga joked as the team got near them.

"Shut it dog-breath!" Shikaru threatened.

"Don't get mad at my nose because you stink!" He glared back at her.

"Why you…" She tried to make a move for him but Konohamaru grabbed hold of her elbow to stop her advance.

"Knock it off! Go home and take a bath! Trust me, you'll smell worse when you start taking on away missions." His eyes locked with hers as he released her.

Kouga looked as if he was about to taunt her for getting scolded when Misoa drummed his hand on his head. "Is that any way to talk to a lady?" He asked simply.

"That is no lady! Did you hear the way she talked to me!"

"I did. But remember, two wrongs don't make a right." He looked at him earnestly as he walked toward Konohamaru.

"How long you guys been done?" Konohamaru asked Misoa.

"A while now; just coming back now from getting something to eat. We also just passed Kimiko and her team. Hadoshi looks a bit torn up."

"Probably from that cat that keeps running away."

Misoa's eyes popped out. "Are you serious! How is that cat still alive?"

"Beats me! I guess it has more than nine lives. He got me pretty scratched up too when I had that mission. If I remember correctly, you had that mission too Misoa." Konohamaru grinned at him.

"Don't remind me. I almost lost my right arm from that cat biting on me. We didn't let Kimiko take him because she could have killed it."

"Oh the good ol' days. What was your mission today anyway?" Konohamaru asked.

"Just to pick some weeds on a farm."

Konohamaru raised an eyebrow. He remembered there were only a few farms around Konoha. "You mean the main farm on the hill just outside the village?"

"Yeah."

"That's about 6 acres! All we had to do was pick up trash and you guys finished before us!" Shikaru yelled in disbelief.

"Kouga and Michi did most of the work." Misoa stated.

"What can I say? We have a lot of energy!" Kouga cheered up. "Woof! Woof!" Michi agreed with him.

"Misoa-sensei? If we are done can I leave? I have to meet my father." Shiobi asked.

Misoa looked at the young Aburame for a moment before answering her. "Sure. Meet us at the training spot for our next mission." She nodded her head and left.

Again, Shikaru noticed Kenshin's eyes were on his female member. "Why don't you just say bye to her rather than staring at her in silence?" She asked bluntly, but quietly to him.

"Wouldn't do any good. She'd just nod her head as an good-bye." He also answered quietly. He looked at Shikaru for a moment that made her feel a little uncomfortable.

"What?" She asked.

"What did you say to Hadoshi to make him upset?" Kenshin asked her in an almost curious tone.

"Nothing…"

"She just almost clobbered him for saying we smell weird!" Inoiki blurted out.

"Shut it!"

"Well you did!" He yelled back at her, not liking to be yelled at by Shikaru. _How does Sora put up with that?_

"I see…" Kenshin folded his arms and closed his eyes-almost as if he were meditating. "Misoa-sensei? Are we done for today?"

Misoa couldn't help but rose an eyebrow at him also, seeing as Shiobi had just asked that question. "Yeah I guess I don't need you all to turn in the mission log. Same time tomorrow then. That goes to you too: Kouga and Michi."

"I know!" Kouga piped up with Michi barking beside him. They also began their way to another location.

Kenshin turned on his heels and walked away. Shikaru bald her fist up and stood straight. "Ohh that…" She mumbled to herself for Kenshin seemingly ignoring her. "Am I free to leave." She asked Konohamaru. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he thought he felt hurt in her voice.

"Sure. See you guys tomorrow."

"Yeah." She said quietly as she headed to the Akimichi compound to take a bath.

"Don't forget about later Shikaru." Kenshin spoke without turning around. She was about to retort but thought otherwise.

Konohamaru stood in the hall with Misoa until his male genin had left also. "Kids?" He sighed aloud. "Wonder how mine will be when he turns their age?" He pondered.

"Probably the same as you: a brat." Misoa laughed as Konohamaru playfully punched him in the arm. They walked out of the building together and out into the streets of Konoha. "I wonder what my mom is doing right now?" Misoa thought aloud.

"I passed her earlier. She said something about training with Anko."

"They have a strange friendship. But they do make a go- Ack!" Misoa stumbled forward from a foreign object landing on his back.

"What's up guys? Who we talking about?" Kimiko asked as she propped her elbows on his strong shoulders.

"Otenba [tomboy]! I told you not to do that!" He emphasized by attempting to shake her off.

"Oh? I'm sorry Saru-chan [Little monkey]." She attempted to sound cute.

"Don't call me that in public." He mumbled as a few girls laughed at the affection.

Konohamaru inwardly laughed at them. They were more like brother and sister than best friends. Besides, it was only natural since their parents were great friends. "You guys hungry?"

"Starved!" Kimiko portraiyed herself as weak as she rested her head on Misoa's head.

"How about ramen?" Misoa asked from under his friend.

"Last one there pays for the meals!" Kimiko shouted as she bounced off Misoa's back. Too bad for the guys though; she put enough chakra into her jump to throw Misoa off balance and fall into Konohamaru.

"CHEATER!" They both yelled from the ground.

"Ha ha! I can't hear you!" She laughed as they began running after her.


End file.
